Queen of the Kennel
by Fluffy's Lady
Summary: Sesshomaru was placed under a curse; he was to remain a dog until he could find someone who would "make all things new" for him. How long will it take to return him to normal? Let's just say, over 500 years. SessKag Canon Divergence Sess!Dog Slow Pace
1. A Sister In Fate Shall Be Found

Hey all, what's up? Me? I'm bored, in pain; don't feel like writing unless it's on this story that's been bugging me for nearly three months now. So, here you go, another sess/kag story straight from the twisted mind of FL. lol. Enjoy!!

Title: Queen of the Kennel

Summary: Sesshomaru was placed under a curse, he was to remain a normal dog until he could find someone to love him. How long will it take to return him to normal? Let's just say, over 500 years.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and co. or Netflix. Sun-L is a real company but I don't own it. I do own a four-wheeler by them, though, and my little brother has a dirt bike. But I do own Sisters in Fate, Torani and co., and the spells that I use. Plus, Mi-mi's Books. If you want to use something of mine, simply ask and explain. ;D

"Speech"

Actions

_'mind speech'_

_thoughts_

Queen of the Kennel

Chapter 1:

A Sister in Fate Shall Be Found

Sesshomaru raised his sensitive nose and gave a light sniff. There were so many new smells in this strange, foreign land. He internally grumbled that he was bored enough to chase Naraku all the way to the North American continent. The scenery was beautiful, he had to admit. Rolling hills filled with lush blue flowers, yellow daisies and what he heard a native call "Indian Paintbrush". Whatever, he wasn't here for the scenery.

His quarry stood before him, a devious smirk on his face. A young woman stood beside him, a fierce look on her face. The Taiyoukai could sense the magic rolling off of her in waves. He would have to be careful if he wished to leave this fight the victor.

"Naraku, it appears as if you need help, yet again, defeating This Sesshomaru," he taunted.

The evil hanyou's face twisted in rage. "That may be, but this time I will make sure you stay down. Or rather, my Sister will," he said with a gracious wave of his hand in acknowledgement of the young woman beside him.

"Sister." Sesshomaru said in a flat tone. "And here I was under the impression that you were an only bastard child."

"Oh, believe me, she is not my sister by birth. But, rather, a part of a local organization called Sisters in Fate. Apparently, they are the monitors of all things magical on this continent. The best of the best, I'm told. And, to top it all off, they are able to be hired out." He grinned sadistically at this. "I just happen to have enough funds to convince this beautiful spell caster to aid me in my cause. Crain, if you will."

The woman, Crain, stepped forward, her eyes boldly scanning Sesshomaru's form. She watched in wicked glee as his hands clenched on Bakusaiga's hilt. "Please, release your weapon, it will do you no good," she said with a musical lilt to her voice. One tanned hand came to flick a lock of her golden hair over her shoulder.

She was human, that was about all Sesshomaru could sense of her. But, she wasn't a normal human. Normal humans didn't have this much magical power rolling off them in torrential waves. Even his half-brother's miko would be hard pressed to beat this woman, such was the level of her power. He drew his sword, keeping both eyes trained on the woman who had once more raised her hands.

"Ready? I told you to relax, there's no need to use that silly toy. It will do you no good." The spell caster smirked again when he merely narrowed his eyes. "Fine, but if you don't put it away it's only going to magnify the spell's effect on you," she warned, still smirking.

"Just get on with it, woman!" Naraku hissed, fear rolling off him in waves. He wasn't one to dally this long when he had the upper hand and this woman's playful taunting was making him on edge.

"Oh poo, it looks like our playtime has come to an end," Crain pouted. "Alright, here you go." Her voice dropped an octave yet stayed the same as she spoke, coming out in an alto and tenor at the same time.

"A sister in fate shall be found,  
Before from this spell you can be unbound.  
Her touch will warm, her voice will soothe  
Until all things shall be made new.  
Time hath no hand in this play,  
But will await the day.  
Powers you have not,  
But they are not lost."

As she finished, Sesshomaru, who had been frozen at the onset of the spell, felt his form growing smaller and longer. His clothes, armor and weapons all turned into fur. The Taiyoukai's face elongated into a muzzle but his markings had vanished. He dropped onto his hands and knees as his arms turned into front legs and his legs turned into a dog's back legs. Now, where the most powerful taiyoukai in Japan once stood, there was a large white dog.

His ears were folded over, not long and floppy like in his true form. His eyes were the pure gold of his humanoid state and his fur remained the smooth white it once was. He no longer had the band of his mokomoko-sama running across his back, instead he looked...normal.

Naraku smirked as he looked down at the dog. This was going just the way he wanted. He stepped forward to deliver a punishing kick to the animal's ribs, only to be stopped by the Sister.

"Alright, I turned that handsome demon into a dog, just like you wanted. Now, where is the rest of my payment?" she demanded, her hand outstretched.

"Consider your life the rest of your payment," Naraku hissed through clenched teeth, his eyes narrowed on the woman before him.

"We made a deal," Crain said, suddenly sounding _very_ serious. "Either pay up or face the consequences."

Naraku barked out a harsh laugh. "Since when do you think you can order me around? I hired you, I am your boss, you are bound by the rules of your organization!" he crowed.

A slow, evil smile spread across the spell caster's face. "Tell me, half-demon, do you know what the rules of my 'organization' are?" This was too easy, ignorance was _never_ bliss, at least, not in her life. Her life consisted of constantly being on her toes. As one of the ruling triad of Sisters, she had to be aware of every movement of every Sister in the group. "There are no 'rules'," she hissed. "The only requirements are you must be no younger than fourteen years of age to join, there are only ten sisters serving at a time, and we are ruled by a triad of sisters. One of the triad is the ultimate Sister, the final word in everything. Regrettably, that is not me; rather, it belongs to my blood sister, Ani, An for short." The smile instantly left her face. "And the final rule is, 'If a Sister is refused payment by her employer, she is entitled to take it out in pounds of flesh.' So, half-demon, prepare for the worst beating of your life. What little money you gave me before was _not_ my commission. Actually it went into An's coffers, as does a percentage of all monies earned by a sister."

Naraku was scared now, more scared than he had been in his entire life. If this woman was powerful enough to take down Sesshomaru, there was no telling what she would do to him. The worse part about it was, though, that she had no emotional ties to threaten. The hanyou gulped audibly before gathering himself in his miasma and fleeing the woman, not hearing the spell she cast on him.

"Where you land is where you stay,  
Where you will await your fate.  
You shall die a pitiless death  
With no one who has remorse left.  
My payment shall come  
In the number of one.  
A woman of power, a woman of strength,  
She shall be the end your length."

The magical energy that had gathered in her hands shot after the fleeing hanyou, streaking like blue lightning across the sky. She smiled an evil smile when she heard the screech of pain as her magic connected with its target. "So be it," she whispered.

Crain turned to leave, noticing for the first time the dog that still stared at her, his lips raised in a silent snarl. "Now, now, pup," she cooed. "Don't take your anger out on me. I have nothing personal against you, I was simply in need of money. And since I didn't get the rest of my payment, I'll play nice. I'll give you a hint on how to lift your spell, but nothing more," she said waving her index finger in a chastising manner at the now furiously snarling dog. "Stay here, in this country. One of the lesser sisters is a Seer, meaning she can see the future. She told me this would happen but I ignored her. Foolish of me, no? Anyway, I requested information on you and, as it turns out, your best bet for lifting the spell is to remain in this country. Eventually, this place will turn into a state of the most powerful country the world will ever see. Your spell shall end here, in Texas as it will come to be known. That is all I can tell you for that is all I know. Ta ta!" She waved at the dog, turning to leave before she heard a voice echo in her head.

_'What will I eat, woman? This Sesshomaru does not eat human food.'_ his voice sounded in her head, vicious, snarling and full of anger.

Crain turned back to Sesshomaru, assessing him critically. "Well, now that you're a dog, I suggest you do what your ancestors did, eat whatever you can to survive. Just don't go after humans, you'll be killed for that. Oh! That reminds me; if you are killed, don't worry. You'll be reincarnated and whelped from a normal bitch, just like every other dog out there." She winked one grey-green eye at his shocked look. "Like I said 'Time hath no hand in this play,' meaning that you will live forever until you are killed then brought back. Between each death, though, you'll be granted a reprieve. You will be granted twenty years of peace in the afterlife in between each life here. But, here's the catch, you'll be a dog and no one who knows you will recognize you." She waved, turning to leave once more. "Ta ta!"

Sesshomaru sat on his hindquarters, utterly stupefied. _How on earth did I let this happen to me?_ he thought despondently. His sighed before standing and making his way across the rolling hills of what would eventually be called "Texas." He had been turned into a dog and that meant he had to eat, at least, that was what his growling stomach told him.

&&&&

_Three years have passed since that fateful day,_ Kagome thought lazily as she lay on a floaty raft in her pool. _We were walking along the beach one afternoon when Naraku suddenly appeared. Everyone was stunned at his appearance; no one knew quite what to think. I was the first to regain my thoughts..._ She drifted peacefully, soaking up the late afternoon sun. _After we completed the jewel, Inuyasha made his wish and I left. Once I got back home, I finished high school and went on to college here in California. Today is the third anniversary of his defeat._ She sighed heavily. Her landlord was calling her, which could only mean one of two things. One, her rent was overdue and he'd come to collect, or, two, he wanted to flirt again. This time, it turned out to be the latter.

"Miss Higurashi," the bald, portly man smiled broadly. "How are you today? I was just walking by and couldn't help but notice you were soaking up the afternoon sun. What a beautiful sight you make, in your 'its-bitsy, teensy-weensy, yellow polka-dot bikini'."

Kagome frowned, turned over off her raft and swam to the side of her pool. "Hello, Mr. Lark. I am just fine and I was just getting out of the pool." She placed on hand on the metal rail, walking up the steps and over to the lawn chair that held her towel. "How can I help you?" she asked as she wrapped herself in the giant piece of terry-cloth.

"I was just delivering your mail," he said hurriedly, reaching to open the latch to the gate.

He stopped when his young tenant called out. "Thank you, sir. Please just leave it in the mail box and I'll pick it up when I walk that way."

The old man nodded, a bit upset that he wouldn't get more of a sight that the young woman provided in her bathing suit. He opened the black box labeled "mail", slipping the letters and package in and closing it. Turning, he walked on to the next condo, delivering the same greeting to the woman who lay stretched out by her own pool.

_Dirty letch,_ Kagome thought. _I'll bet my entire college scholarship that he's somehow related to Miroku._ She walked to her gate, opening it up and swinging it inside the small, concrete yard. She opened the mail box, surprised at the amount of things she had received. Closing the gate, she sorted through the mail as she walked back inside. _Junk mail. Junk. Publisher's Clearing House...not interested. Package from Ayumi. Oh! Look at that, she moved to Texas. Huh, wonder why. Um...latest movies from Netflix. Letter from Mom. She moved too...I'll have to read this one first._

The priestess opened the sliding door with her foot, still reviewing the mail she received. She walked to the small kitchen island, setting all the mail except the letter from her mother and the package from Ayumi down. Kagome walked to her small living room, reading the letter she had opened from her mother.

_Kagome,_

_Darling, how are you? As you can tell from the address on this letter, your brother, grandfather and I have moved from the shrine. With your grandfather being the age he is, the stairs turned out to be too much for his old body. One day, he slipped and fell, breaking his hip. I was glad we had finally convinced him to get one of those medical alert pendants, otherwise we wouldn't have discovered him until later that evening when Souta and I returned home from the doctor's._

_Nothing is wrong with us, don't worry. It was just yearly check-ups that your grandfather refused to attend. Anyway, we moved to a small apartment in town that is close to my new job as a secretary and a short walking distance from Souta's school. Your grandfather was lucky, the break was clean and didn't need any surgery. He simply needed rest, the doctor said._

_So he's now in a physical therapy program three times a week. He's doing much better. Although he loudly protests each session, I can see the way he is improving. It's cute to watch him flirt with some of the women there. Apparently they're used to it and either ignore him or his flirting, depending on who they are._

_I would have called you, but I lost your number in the move and our new one is enclosed below. I hope you are doing well and look forward to speaking with you soon._

_Love,_

_Mom._

Kagome smiled to herself. "Same old Mom. Same old grandpa." She set the letter aside before eagerly tearing into the package from her old high school friend.

Out onto her lap fell two books and a letter. The priestess carefully looked over the books, coming to the conclusion they were historical fiction. _Just like Ayumi, test lover and history lover._ She sighed good naturedly before setting the books down and opening the letter.

_Hey Kagome,_

_Remember me? It's Ayumi. I certainly remember you. I was ecstatic to find out you had moved to the United States as well. I moved here about three years ago. I was tired of all the noise and bustling cities of Tokyo and all the crowds of Japan in general. Oh, don't get me wrong, I love my home country but Texas is absolutely beautiful._

_I am now living in Midtown, somewhere in Deep East Texas along the Louisiana border. Not too close, though. Cajuns really aren't my type of people. Loud, noisy, nosey and not to mention drunk off their feet every time I happen to pass one by. Oh well, there really aren't that many here in Midtown._

_Anyway, once I got out here and got settled, I opened up a small bookstore in the downtown area. The people here are really nice and my business is thriving. I thought of you when I received these historical fiction books. I remember in high school the only subject you really seemed to enjoy was history. So I thought you would like these. This is a very popular author around here._

_I made many new friends since I moved. One young woman who really made an impression on me is Torani. She makes everybody call her Tor, though. She really likes nicknames. She calls me Yu-yu or Mi-mi. I don't mind, it's really funny. She was my best customer until she took a job offer in West Texas, somewhere around El Paso I believe. Apparently, she's a very qualified Kennel Technician and that's in high demand out there. We keep in touch through letters and such. I send her the occasional book and she sends me things from El Paso._

_My favorite things she sends me are the pictures. It's absolutely beautiful out there. Some people might call the landscape barren, but it's beautiful to me. She's even managed to capture some pictures of wildlife out there._

_Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that you are welcome anytime out here. Just give me a call before you head out and I'll have the spare room in my apartment ready for you._

_Oh! And happy belated twenty-third birthday. I'm sorry I missed it but I lost your e-mail and you had moved so I was unable to contact you. These books are a late birthday present. Remember, anytime you want to visit, you are most certainly welcome to come. My number is listed below._

_Love,_

_Ayumi._

"Well that's sweet of her," Kagome smiled. "Summer vacation just started and I'm more than willing to visit an old friend with a bookstore! It'll get my mind off of _them_. Let me just give her a call." The young woman picked up her cordless phone, dialing as she gathered the letters and books in her hands and dropping them on the coffee table.

"Hello. Thank you for calling Mi-mi's Books, this is Ayumi speaking, how may I help you?" a polite voice on the other end of the phone answered.

"Ayumi? This is Kagome. I just got your letter and--" Kagome started but was cut off by a sudden squeal.

"Kagome! How are you? I didn't expect to hear from you so soon! How are you?" a very excited Ayumi asked.

"I'm fine. I got a full ride to a university out here in business management. How about you?" Kagome asked, dropping her towel in the small bathroom and stripping out of her bakini.

"Oh, I'm attending an online college in the evenings. I'm in for financial management. I've got another year to go before I get my diploma," she giggled excitedly.

"Really? Me too. So what are your plans afterwards?"

"Just to continue with my book store. I really enjoy it. You?"

"I don't know. I hadn't really thought about it. Got any room for a partner in your business?" Kagome asked jokingly.

"Sure!" Ayumi said excitedly.

"Really?" the priestess asked, a bit of doubt in her voice. "Honestly, Ayumi, I was only kidding."

"Well I wasn't! With my degree in financial management and your degree in business management, we could make quite the pair! What do you think?"

Kagome stood there for a moment, stunned. _Well, it would give me something to do with my life. I know Ayumi and she's a kind person with a good heart, she wouldn't lie or cheat in a business with me. It couldn't hurt, right?_ "Sure, Ayumi, I'd love to. When are you available for me to visit? I'm on summer vacation right now so I have two months before my final year."

"Um, can you come down next week? That's usually one of the busiest times of the summer. For some reason the week after summer vacation, all the high school students flock to my bookstore. I think that their teachers assign them summer reading. Boy, am I glad I'm out of that now." She giggled lightheartedly, making Kagome giggle as well.

"Next week sounds fine. That gives me plenty of time to let my landlord know I'll be gone. How long do you want me to stay?" she asked as she turned on the shower.

"Can you stay the rest of the summer?" Ayumi asked. "It would give you a feel for Midtown and allow you to make living arrangements for when you come to stay permanently. Midtown isn't really that big. It's a nice size town, not too big, not too small. It's got a decent sized mall and lots of quaint little shops to visit. I know you'll enjoy living here." There was a smile in her voice as she talked.

"Sounds like fun," Kagome said as she tested the water. "And sounds like a plan. I'll be there next week. How does Thursday sound? Today is Tuesday so that gives me a couple of days to finish things off here and drive down. Can you believe how expensive gas is now? I mean come on! Nearly four bucks a gallon. Well, at least I got a Prius. Those things really are worth it."

"Ya, I know. It's unreal. You know that little car those guys drive in the Wii commercial?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well, those are real cars. Actually, they are considered go-carts but can be made street legal very easily. They are made by a Chinese company called Sun-L. Anyway, there was a dealer around here and I snatched one up. They have great gas mileage and it was really easy to make it street legal. So, although it is really small, it's got great mileage and it's all I need," Ayumi explained.

"That sounds great. I'll see you in a week then?"

"Sure. See ya."

"Bye," Kagome responded, hanging up after Ayumi's echoing goodbye. She set the phone down and stepped into the hot water, allowing it to flow over her. After a few minutes of relaxation, she washed her hair and body and got out. Shutting off the water, she dried herself off and wrapped up once more in the towel. She made her way to her bedroom. The young woman flopped down on the bed, her eyes slowly drifting shut as she fell asleep thinking about the week ahead of her.

&&&

Sesshomaru crouched down in the grass, slowly stalking his prey. The tan rabbit sat just a few yards ahead of him, munching on some grass, completely unaware of its impending doom. The enormous white dog slowly stalked forward, carefully placing each foot where it should go. _Just a little bit more,_ he thought, drooling heavily at the thought of a well deserved dinner. It had been over 500 year since that infernal woman had cursed him. He had lost count of how many times he had been killed only to be whelped again after a short twenty year break. He forgot how many methods had been used to kill him. Poison, a bullet, traps, tainted meat, there were just too many to clearly remember.

Apparently people thought him to be a wolf because of his sheer size. He snorted at this thought. _I am no mangy wolf_ he thought with disgust. _I am...was...the Taiyoukai of Western Japan. I am a dog, not some flea-bitten wolf. Just because my head reaches above an average man's waist doesn't mean I'm a wolf. Bloody idiots._ His ears perked up as the rabbit sat up, twitching his own ears as a noise reached it. The white dog took his chance at the distracted animal, shooting forward from the brush.

The small creature took off like a rocket, running in zigzags from the determined predator. Its hair fell out as it ran, an attempt at distracting and confusing its predator. The stupid animal didn't think as it ran, simply sprinting towards the main highway that ran outside of El Paso.

Sesshomaru put on a burst of speed, lunging and finally catching the rabbit in his jaws. With a quick snap, its neck was broken and it was hanging limply in the jaws of the white canine. The dog stood there, thinking. He didn't notice the sound of a car approaching, blowing its horn like mad. He didn't notice it until it was too late.

The old truck hit the dog straight on, going fifty miles an hour. Sesshomaru yelped in pain as he was knocked to the ground and felt the tires roll over him. He was thrown up to hit the undercarriage, bouncing back down again on the concrete. The back tires ran over his limp form, continuing on, not even bothering to stop.

The rain came just as quickly as the vehicle had. It suddenly began to pour; lightning cracked through the air as its partner, thunder, rumbled along behind. The water poured from the sky in torrential sheets, matching the mood the day had suddenly taken.

A man a few car lengths back saw the whole thing happen from through the windshield of his Ford.

"Damn!" he muttered, looking on in amazement as the driver of the truck kept on going. "That is not right. You don't have to swerve or slam on the brakes but you can try to avoid to poor creatures." Jake put on his brakes, slowly coming to a stop in front of the poor dog. He hopped out of his truck, kneeling down in the road before the animal. "Poor fella. Look at you, all banged up like this." The man placed his hand on the dog's chest, feeling for the gentle, unsteady rise and fall that signaled the dog still lived.

"Alright man, let's get you into town. The West Side Animal Hospital is still open this late. Come on, buddy." Slowly, and as gently as possible, the man slipped his arms underneath the dog. He lifted him with a slight grunt. "Man, you're heavy." Carefully, he walked back to his truck. He opened the back door, laying the dog on the back seat and closing it softly behind himself.

Jumping back into the front seat, he cranked up the engine of the truck, peeling off into the growing night. "Hold on there, man. We're almost there. Just hang on and keep breathing." He floored it when he heard a shaky breath from the animal. Amazingly, he passed the old truck that had run the dog over. _A Chevy, figures,_ he thought with disdain. He got the driver's attention as he flew by him, throwing a rude gesture towards the teenager in the front seat.

Ten minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot of West Side Animal Clinic. He threw the truck into park, shutting it off and jumping out. The Good Samaritan opened the back door of the truck, horrified by the amount of blood the dog was losing. Heedless of his clothing, the man once again picked the dog up in his arms, slamming the door shut with his foot.

He practically ran to the door of the clinic, sighing in relief when the automatic sliding doors opened. "Help, someone please! This dog was run over a few minutes ago! He's bleeding badly!" Jake called out frantically.

Immediately two women came out the treatment door, a stretcher on wheels being pushed in between them. "Here!" one of the women called. "Place him on the stretcher and we'll take care of him. What's his name?"

"I don't know," the man sighed, placing the injured animal on the proffered stretcher. "I just saw him get hit and the driver didn't stop. I couldn't help myself so I picked him up and brought him here. Will he be okay?"

"We'll find out soon enough, sir. You have a good heart," the other woman said as both women pushed the animal into the treatment door.

"Doctor Mack!" the petite blonde called out as she pushed the stretcher into the hallway. "We have an emergency here! Canine HBC about ten minutes ago the man says. He's bleeding badly and is labored of breath."

"Pulse is steady but faint. Heart is beating but you can barely hear it through the stethoscope," the red head said. She huffed as she pulled the stretcher along behind her. She was getting too old for this kind of stuff.

"BP?" Doctor Mack, an older man with thinning white hair circling his head, asked.

"Not sure. He was just brought in. What room do we put him in?" the blonde asked.

"Stick him in room one. Where's Tor?" he asked.

"Back in the kennel. You want her to get the information from the man?" the redhead grunted as she lifted the dog onto the examining table.

"Yes, in the mean time, one of you shave his chest and prep him for x-ray. It looks like this fella is going to need surgery." He placed the stethoscope on the dog's massive chest, listening to his breath as the redhead, Rebbecca, left to find Tor. "Poor fella, some people, I swear." The doctor shook his head slowly, sadly at the thought of the animal's death. If no one stepped forward to claim him, he would be put down. The clinic just didn't have the funds for a charity case.

&&&

Torani, Tor for short, was bringing in the last of the dogs from outside when Rebbecca, her kennel partner and sometimes Vet Tech, came bustling in the door.

"Tor!" the woman called. "Tor! You're needed up front!"

"Hang on a sec," the brunette called as she ushered the husky-wolf mix into his run. She sighed as she closed the gate, smiling when the dog jumped up, placing his front paws on the gate and barked at her. "Ya, you're a cutey. Whatcha need, Bec?" she asked, pushing her hair out of her emerald eyes and walking to the front of the kennel. "What's up?"

"A dog was brought in a moment ago, badly injured. Apparently he was hit by a car and, pardon my french, the jackass who hit him didn't stop," the older woman huffed as she wiped the sweat off her face with a paper towel she pulled from her pocket. "A good Samaritan saw the whole thing happen and you need to get the info from him. The chart is up front with Dora. Hurry now, Doctor Mack thinks he might not make it. If no one claims him, he'll have to put him down. The clinic can't afford a charity right now."

Tor nodded as she walked with Rebbecca. "Okay, are you helping Doc out or are you finishing up in the kennel?"

"I'm helping with Doc. What do you have left to do?"

"Just clean up the outside and bleach it down. After that, I've got to pick up the trash, sweep the floors and spot mop. Everything else is done," Tor said, pulling her shoulder length hair into a low ponytail. "Alright, then. It shouldn't take me too long to get the info, and we were pretty slow today so there' not much trash in the cans.  
The outside is the biggest thing, even that shouldn't take too long, though."

Rebbecca nodded. "Okay, then. Hurry and get that information. We're in room one when you've got it."

"Okay, see you in a few," Tor said as they exited the kennel door and went their separate ways. She walked down the narrow hallway leading to the waiting room, peaking into room one as she went. The young woman gave a low whistle of appreciation at the size of the animal on the table. _He's big, and pretty too. I betcha he's the one who's in here for HBC. Poor baby._

"Tor!" a plump woman with short black hair called. "Here's the chart for the CHBC. Get as much info as possible and hurry to Doctor Mack. He needs the stuff a.s.a.p to help the poor thing out."

"Right, Dora. That's what I'm here for. Let me guess, the Good Samaritan is the man whose shirt is covered in blood?" Tor asked, a bit of sarcasm in her voice.

"Yea, that's him. He seems a bit upset. Be careful with him, Tor. He looks fragile," another woman called out from behind the desk.

"I know, I know," the brunette sighed. She took the chart from Dora, making her way out the door and into the waiting room. Carefully, the young woman shut the door behind her and made her way to the man. "Mr...Jake?" she asked softly.

The man looked up from where he was sitting, a heavy look on his face. "Yes? That's me. Can I help you?"

Tor sat down on the bench next to the man. "My name is Torani, you can call me Tor. I need to get some information on the dog you brought in. Are you his owner?"

"No," Jake sighed. "I'm not. I'm just the guy who picked him up off the road." He chuckled mirthlessly. "The idiot teenager who ran him over just kept going. All he did was blow his horn. He didn't try to avoid the dog, or even slow down."

Tor nodded. "Okay, do you have any idea how old he is?" she asked.

The man looked thoughtful for a moment. "He looks to be about three years old, but he's so big I'm just not sure."

"Where was he hit at?"

"On the main highway outside of town. I saw the jackass hit him. It was horrible." He shuddered and the kennel tech placed a hand on his arm comfortingly. "He hit him going around fifty miles an hour. The poor dog was rolled up under the truck, it looked like he hit the undercarriage before coming back down and being run over by the back tires."

"Right." She scribbled as the man talked. "Can you tell me anything else? Do you know who he belongs to? Did he have a collar or anything?"

"No, not that I saw." He shook his head. "What's going to happen to him?"

"Well, right now, we're not sure. If no owner steps up to claim him we'll have to put him down. The clinic doesn't have the money for a charity case right now," Tor explained slowly. "He's a very beautiful dog. It would be a shame if that had to happen."

Jake nodded. "I know. I would offer to adopt him, but my wife is allergic to dogs." He sighed heavily. "I just wish there was something more I could do."

Tor patted the man's arm sympathetically. "I know. I wish there was something I could do as well. Well, I've got to get this information to the doctor. I'll be back out in a little bit. Ok?" The man nodded wearily as she stood and walked out the door and into the treatment hallway. She sighed as she walked into room one. There was blood all over the table, the doctor and the two techs. "How's he doin'?" she asked softly.

Doctor Mack shook his head. "Not so good. He's stable now but his pulse is still low and his breathing is still labored. I've got the bleeding stopped but," he sighed wearily. "If he doesn't get into surgery soon, he might not make it through the night. From what I can tell, it looks like he's got a couple of broken ribs and his left hip is dislocated. The hip is easy enough to fix but the ribs are what will need surgery. His right front leg is badly broken, it will need surgery too. Is the man the owner?"

The kennel tech shook her head. "No, sir, he's not. He's just the Good Samaritan who picked him up after he saw what happened. He said he would have been willing to adopt him but his wife is allergic, so that's a no go," she sighed, running her hand through her tied-back hair. Her emerald eyes were troubled as she watched the poor animal. "I just wish there was something more that I could do."

The doctor and techs looked up at her as she said this. "No! You guys know I can't bring another dog home! Keiko barely tolerates those that I've got right now. I'm no Caesar Milan," Tor protested, her hands raised in defense. "Besides, even with my discount here and at Petsmart, I still wouldn't have enough funds to take care of him."

Still, they watched her. "Why don't you talk to the good samaritan," Rebbecca suggested. "Maybe you and he could work out a deal." The stout redheaded woman looked to her co-worker and boss for support. "Perhaps we could take up a collection as well?"

Milly, the petite blonde, shrugged. "Jack and I would be willing to help out."

Tor scowled ferociously. She was outnumbered and she knew it. "Fine," she grumbled. "I'll go talk to him. The man thinks he's about three years old, but he's not sure because of his size. There was no collar."

"No microchip either," Milly said, putting away the chip scanner.

"From what he saw, the man who hit him was going fifty miles an hour. The grill hit him and the front tires spun him up under the undercarriage. Apparently he hit it before being thrown back down onto the pavement when the back tires rolled over him." Tor shook her head, a disgusted look on her face. "The jack--" she stopped when she saw the look on her co-workers' faces. "--butt didn't stop. He just kept going."

The doctor nodded. "His injuries are consistent with the report. I really don't want to put this guy down, it'd be such a waste. All he needs is surgery to fix his leg and ribs and he'd be good to go. A little fluids wouldn't hurt either. Well? Are you going to talk to him?"

"Fine," Tor said with a defeated sigh. "I know when I'm outnumbered. Here's the chart. I'll go talk to him." The kennel tech set the chart down on the seat, turning and leaving out the door. She shook her head as she walked down the hall. _How do I get myself into these messes?_ she thought with a shake of her head. _I already have five dogs at the house, I don't need another one. But, me and my big heart can't refuse a dog in need._

Opening the door, the young woman stepped out into the waiting room. Her eyes scanned the small lobby until they landed on the man who was reading informational packets on cats. The brunette cleared her throat as she walked up to him. Startled, the man looked up, his grey eyes meeting with her green ones. "Yes?" he asked wearily. "How is he?"

"Well, they've got him stable for now. He's lost a lot of blood, but the worst of it is his ribs and his right front leg. The doctor thinks he's got a few broken ribs and his leg is badly broken. His left hip is dislocated but that's easily fixable." She waved off the man's concerned look. "I wanted to talk to you about adoption. I know you can't adopt him, but I am willing to. The only thing is my finances. While I do have a discount here, the surgery and post-op care would still be a little much for my budget right now." She took a deep breath before she continued. "If you are willing to pay for half of the surgery and post-op care, I would pay for the other half and adoption fees. If you are willing to agree, he would live and I wouldn't bother you with him again unless you wanted to see him afterwards. What do you think?" Tor stood there for a moment, waiting on the man's decision.

"I am willing to help," Jake said slowly. "But I would have to consult with my wife. I don't think she would mind, she does like dogs. But still, I would have to talk with her."

"I understand," the young woman nodded. "Please consider, though, my offer. He is a beautiful animal and it would be a shame to put him down."

The Good Samaritan nodded, running his hand through his short brown hair. "Can you give me a few minutes?" he asked quietly. "I need to talk to my wife."

"I understand, sir. When you have reached your decision, let Dora know and she'll call me up here to talk to you," Tor complied. She turned to leave, hoping against hope this dog could be saved.

Five minutes later, Tor was in the middle of picking up trash when Dora buzzed her. She set the bag down and hurried to the front lobby where the man still stood. "So," she asked quietly. "How did it go?"

A brief smile lit up the man's face. "She has agreed to it. My wife is a lovely woman, she cares very much for animals and I know it hurts her to be allergic to dogs. We are willing to help out."

The female tech reached out to shake the man's hand. "I'm sure he's really going to appreciate this. Now, if you'll just fill out some forms for us, we can get the finances straightened out as to who owes what." She smiled brilliantly at him. "I'm sure he's going to appreciate this, just like I do."

Jake nodded, walking up to the counter to receive the papers from the checkout clerk.

Tor still smiling, slipped out of the lobby and into the hall. She tapped gently on the treatment room door, sticking her head inside. "Go ahead and start treating him. I'm taking him home with me as soon as he's well," she explained.

The doctor and techs looked visibly relieved. They quickly moved the dog back onto the stretcher and ushered him into the surgery suite. Three hours later, Sesshomaru came out of surgery, knocked out cold, but much better off. His hip had been relocated and his ribs and leg fixed. His wounds were stitched, and, all in all, he looked like a Frankenstein mutt.

"Poor baby," Tor cooed, gently petting the fur of the slowly coming around dog. "What to name you?"

A young man, around six foot in height, walked up to the girl and her dog, smiling. "He's yours?" he asked.

"Ya," Tor nodded. "I just adopted him. Some jackass hit him and kept going. The man in the lobby stopped and brought him in. Good thing, too, otherwise he would've died. What do you think, Jack? What should I name him?"

The man, Jack, crouched down before the two, a grin lighting his eyes and his face. "Well..." he said slowly. "How about 'Seth'?" However, the man had such a thick lisp that the name "Seth" came out sounding more like "Sess."

Tor smirked. "'Sess' eh?" she grinned at Jack offended look. "I like it. Sess it is. Hello, Sess. How do you like your new name?"

&&&

A/N: So what do you think? This is my newest Sess/Kag. Tell me what you think!! Wheh! Long first chapter! 13 pages, but this sets up a lot that needs to be done. The following chapters won't be quite this long, at least until we get to the real sess/kag goodness. ;D

11/09: Sooo... yes, I am reposting. I loved this story and got my muse back for it. More chapters to come! I don't really plan on doing a lengthy overhaul on it... just reposting. :D


	2. Before From This Spell

Ok, I have been warned that people are up in arms about this being possible plagiarism. NO!! It is NOT!! I have read Second Chance by Striking Falcon and I can assure you that this story will NOT turn out like hers is. There are very few similarities. One, it's a sess/kag. Two: Sess gets turned into a dog. Three: Love can break the spell. Four: Sess gets HBC. BUT that is where the similarities end. SF's is AU. Mine is Canon. In SC, Kagome hits Sess. QotK, a jackass does. In SC, Kikyou is Sess's bride to be but he refuses her so she curses him. In QotK, he has absolutely nothing to do with the dead witch; she probably won't even appear in this story! The woman who cursed him is part of an organization that I MADE UP. "A sister in fate" is a double-entendre that comes into play because Sess refused to relinquish his hold on Bakusaiga. _sighs_ Besides, like one of my supporters says, you can't call this plagiarism and not call all the clichés were Kag finds Inu with Kikyou again and runs to Sess plagiarism. COME ON!! Yes, I am severely pissed off. Don't ever, ever say that I plagiarized a story. That is the lowest of the low. _huffs_ I just recently resolved an issue with someone on fanlib for stealing my story. DON'T IGNORE THE FACTS THAT ARE INFRONT OF YOUR FACE!! I will fight tooth and nail to see this story published the way I intend for it to be. Please, don't piss me off again. Thank you to my loyal supporters and fans out there, you are all very much appreciated.

Chapter Dedication: To all those who see the truth of this blasted situation and know that I didn't plagiarize. Thank you to those who read and review with kind thoughts in mind.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and co. or Netflix. Sun-L is a real company but I don't own it. I do own a four-wheeler by them, though, and my little brother has a dirt bike. But I do own Sisters in Fate, Torani and co., and the spells that I use. Plus, Mi-mi's Books. If you want to use something of mine, simply ask and explain. ;D

"Speech"

Actions

'Beast/Animal Speech'

_'mind speech'_

_thoughts_

Queen of the Kennel

Chapter 2:

Before From This Spell

_Previously in Queen of the Kennel:_

_The man, Jack, crouched down before the two, a grin lighting his eyes and his face. "Well..." he said slowly. "How about 'Seth'?" However, the man had such a thick lisp that the name "Seth" came out sounding more like "Sess."_

_Tor smirked. "'Sess' eh?" She grinned at Jack's offended look. "I like it. Sess it is. Hello, Sess. How do you like your new name?"_

&&&

Sesshomaru knew he should be in serious pain, but, for some reason, he only felt a throbbing ache. _Did I end up in the afterlife after all?_ he thought listlessly. _No, I don't think so. After that first human ran me over, another stopped and picked me up. The last I remember I was placed on something cold and silver. After that, nothing. So where am I?_ His eyes fluttered open as he heard a gentle voice calling to him.

"Hello, Sess, how do you like your new name?" the voice asked softly. It was then he noticed a soft hand stroking his fur. "Poor baby, some jackass of a driver hit you and left you for dead. Good thing there are still Good Samaritans in this world, huh?"

Since when did anyone call him "Sess"? Usually it was just mutt, animal, dog or some other insulting term. But "Sess" and "Baby"? Man, he must have been hit harder than he thought. He raised his head slowly, turning to find who the voice belonged to. A young woman sat on the floor beside him, gently stroking his side and cooing at him. She had shoulder length brown hair that was tied back in a low ponytail. A few wispy strands had escaped, framing her face and giving her emerald eyes a softer look. He wanted to growl, wanted to snarl and tell this girl to back off and leave him alone, but he found that he had no energy to protest her ministrations.

Tor smiled softly when he raised his head. "It looks like someone is waking up," she said. Reaching out with her hand, she gently pushed her newest dog's head back onto the towel lining the metal cage he was in. "Put your head back down and rest. You just came out of surgery and you need your rest. Rest, baby." The young woman cooed to the oversized dog, smoothing the ruffled fur on his head.

Sesshomaru was only too happy to oblige. Allowing his head to be pushed back down onto the towel, he closed his eyes once more and began to drift off into sleep. He felt the girl's hand leave his body and vaguely heard her stand and have a short, muttered conversation with another person nearby. Just as he was on the verge of sleep again, he was startled with a severe slamming of the cage doors. He sat up with a start, looking around dazedly.

"Poor, booboo," a tiny woman with short brown cooed at the disoriented dog. "I hate to do that but you need to come around a little bit. You can go back to sleep in a little bit, but for now we need you awake to make sure there aren't going to be any complications with post-op."

Unsteadily, the white dog lay back down on his side, his eyes blinking slowly. So he did make it, and it seemed that these people were determined to see him live. Well, it's not as if he was determined to die. He heaved a great sigh; what was going to happen to him now? He knew how it worked in animal shelters and clinics. If you weren't adopted within a certain period of time, you were put to sleep. That had happened to him three or four times at the least.

So why were these humans caring for him now? Did that mean someone had adopted him? He listened intently as the first voice he had heard began to speak again.

"Ya," she was saying, "I'm such a sucker for big dogs. I couldn't help it. I really appreciate the collection you guys are taking up for me, that's too sweet." A smile was obvious in her voice. Did that mean that she had adopted him? "Doc says that if all goes well, I can take him home in four days, maybe less if we're lucky."

"So, Tor, what are you going to name him?" the second voice asked. Sesshomaru recognized this voice as the one who had slammed the cage doors, forcefully dragging him from his drug induced slumber. His lips raised partway in a half hearted silent snarl. All he wanted was peace.

"Well, Jack suggested 'Sess'," the first voice, the one who was called Tor, replied.

"'Sess'?" the second voice asked, doubt filling her tone.

A giggle issued from somewhere. "No, not really. He actually said 'Seth' but with his lisp it came out sounding more like 'Sess' and 'Sess' seems to fit him, don't you think?" Tor asked.

"Ya, I guess. He is your dog. Whatever you say, Tor. Whatever you say," the second voice answered.

Tor laughed, a rich sound that filled the room. "Ya, I guess. Anyway, I'll be by tomorrow after my shift at Petsmart to check on him. In the meantime, Bon, I know you'll take good care of my new baby."

"Baby?" Bon laughed. "That dog is enormous! How on earth could he be a baby!"

Tor laughed again. "You of all people should know how! Doc says he's really only about three years old. So he's still just a baby."

"Did you have him neutered as well?" Bon asked.

Sesshomaru instantly became alert at this, shifting his back legs to make sure he was still intact. _Whew_, he thought with relief. In all the lives he had spent on this blasted earth, he had somehow escaped that fate. Mainly because he had never been someone's pet, always the stray dog with no home. Always the one abused, kicked and beaten. Always the one targeted for blame. Never had he been coddled, cooed over and called "baby;" that was all new to him. Maybe he deserved a rest after all the lives he'd lived.

"Nah, I don't usually have them neutered unless they become a dominance problem. Even then it's only a last resort," Tor stated, crouching down beside the cage to look at her newest charge. "How much did he weigh?" she asked in a thoughtful tone.

Bon plucked a manila folder off the table behind her. Flipping it open to the file, she scanned the page until she came up with the number. "120 pounds!" she whistled appreciatively. "And he's half starved! Man, I wonder what he's going to weigh when he's fully healthy." The older woman shook her head in amazement. "They just keep breeding them bigger and bigger and smaller and smaller."

"I think I'll stick with my big dogs," the younger woman stated matter of factly. "I'm always afraid I'm going to break a Chihuahua or step on one of those Yorkies."

"I know what you mean. I like my dogs big, but not that big!" came a third voice, this one masculine with a heavy lisp. Sesshomaru didn't recognize this voice.

"Agreed, Jack," came Bon's voice again. "My border collies are the biggest I like them."

"Ya, well," Tor sighed, standing once more and stretching her legs. She grabbed her purse and waved to her co-workers as she headed out the door. "My heart goes out to them more the bigger they are." The young woman winked good naturedly at her friends before calling one last time to her dog. "Bye, Sess, I'll see you tomorrow!"

Sesshomaru sighed again, relieved that quiet had finally come. It seemed as if he really had been adopted. He just hoped this girl was a good person.

&&&

Tor sighed as she slipped into the driver's seat of her 1995 Ford. Allowing her head to hit the steering wheel, she groaned loudly. "Why is it me that always gets into the messes? Is it not enough that I have nine other women out to get me and I'm cursed for eternity? Now, I have to take care of _another_ dog. Keiko is so going to hate me when I get home." She sighed, sitting up straight and buckling her seat belt.

The young woman cranked up the engine of her truck, turning on the windshield wipers as she pulled out into the storming night. Carefully, she pulled out onto the highway, accelerating to fifty-five miles an hour on the slick road. She stared straight ahead, her eyes never once leaving the road in front of her. It was easy to miss the turn off to her apartments on a good day, even more so on a day like this. _There,_ she thought. _Found it._

Flicking on the right blinker, she pulled off the highway and onto a smaller road that lead into town. Five minutes later, she pulled into an apartment complex and into the parking garage. It was times like this when she appreciated the extra ten dollars a month to pay for a covered parking spot. Throwing the truck into park, she shut off the engine and climbed out, dragging her purse after her. Tor locked the door and swung the keys about her pointer finger, whistling absent mindedly as she walked to the elevator. She pressed the up button and waited for the doors to open.

The young woman slipped inside the crowded box. "Number three please!" she called out. An answering grunt came from the front. "Thanks!"

It took ten minutes before Tor was able to finally get off onto her floor. By that time she had dropped her car keys in her purse and dug out her house keys. Finding the right one, she unlocked her front door and walked inside, flicking on the light switch as she went. Her eyes met with a destroyed towel and trash strewn out all over the living room floor. She sniffed and groaned, covering her nose from the smell of feces and urine.

"Keiko!" she yelled, irritated beyond belief. "You damn dog! You're thirteen years old! You know better than this!" At her call, an old female border collie with a graying muzzle came trotting out into the living room, a smirk on her face. "If you weren't so old I would have adopted you out years ago," Tor hissed, her eyes narrowed on the bitch.

The old dog just barked, though, wagging her tail cheerfully. Suddenly, she stopped and Tor knew she was in for a thirty minute sniff fest if something didn't happen quickly. Turning around and shutting her door, she threw the deadbolt with one hand as she undid the drawstring on her pants with the other. She turned back around, stumbling out of the scrub pants and pulling off her shirt.

Once she was down to just her underwear, she laid out the clothes neatly on the floor, giving a loud whistle to call her remaining dogs. Instantly, the room was filled with canines in a hurry to sniff her clothing. Two dogs, one lab and another border collie, came barreling out of the kitchen. A Jack Rustle came flying from the hallway as a Golden Retriever came hustling on his tail. Tor sighed, that was everyone.

She threaded her way through the furry mass of animals sniffing at her scrubs, laughing and giggling as their furry bodies brushed against her bare one. After making it out of her pack of hounds, the young woman walked down her hallway, opening the spare bathroom door to let out her overweight black cat. The animal bolted out of the door, winding his way around his mistress's ankles. He purred delightedly when she reached down and picked him up, flipping him onto his back and giving his generous belly a thorough rub.

"Hey, Georgey-boy," she murmured, rubbing his paws with her cheek. "How's my fat cat?" The black feline sounded like a broken motor as he rumbled his pleasure into her shoulder. "Ya, that's what I thought, big boy." Tor turned him over, allowing him to jump out of her arms and onto the floor.

Raising up onto his hind legs, he batted her ankles with his declawed front feet. 'Hungry!' he mewled to her unhearing hears. Tor laughed, knowing what he wanted anyway. She followed the cat into the bathroom, giving him a handful of Cat Chow in his fish shaped bowl.

On her way out, she grabbed a wad of toilet paper and some paper towels, intent on cleaning up her oldest dog's mess.

&&&

Keiko sniffed vigorously of her owner's clothing. 'There's more than just another dog on here!' she called to her pack-mates. 'The scent of his blood is on it too! Get rid of it!'

The black lab, Duccette, tucked her tail and whined. 'But Tor doesn't like it when we tear up her clothes. Why do you insist on doing it and messing up her den?' the pup asked.

The old bitch whirled on the young female, her teeth bared and a vicious growl ripping its way from her throat. 'You dare to question your Alpha?' she snarled in the face of the pup.

Mac, the Jack Rustle, turned on Keiko. 'Tor says we are all equal in her eyes. We are all betas to her Alpha. You have no right to claim that position!' he barked at the old female.

'Do you really think I care what that foolish human wants me to do?' the graying border collie asked of the smaller animal. 'She is stupid; she cannot understand what we say and degrades us with her "baby talk".' She raised her tail high over her back, showing her teeth to all those who opposed her.

"Keiko!" snapped Tor as she walked into the room and saw the way her dog was demanding the position of Alpha among the others. Immediately, the old bitch whirled on the young woman. Tor was ready, though. She struck quickly with her first two fingers, digging them into the tender neck of the old female with a correction sound. "Tch! No!" Her voice was firm, deep, not to be denied.

The old female, however, had no intention of backing down. She jumped, her jaws open and her target the young woman's hand. The brunette was no fool, though, she knew this was coming. Pulling back her hand, she reached around with her foot and booted the dog in the rump with another correction sound. "Tch! No!" This time, Keiko yielded with a yelp. Immediately, she dropped down onto the floor, her belly showing and her tail curled over her stomach.

Tor maintained eye contact with the errant female until the animal dropped her eyes. Still the young woman kept her there for a few minutes until she relaxed completely. It was then, and only then, that Tor turned away, gathering her clothes and tossing them towards the laundry room.

She made her way to the mess of feces that the old bitch had left in her floor, picking it up with a disgusted look on her face before making her way to the spare bathroom and flushing it down the toilet. "Gross," she complained. The female tech sighed, slipping on a pair of flip-flops to dry up the urine from the linoleum floor. "I swear; that dog. One of these days." She shook her fist with the silent threat.

&&&

Tor looked up at the clock on the wall. _Two-fifty,_ she thought giddily. Only ten more minutes before she could shop for he newest charge. The last ten minutes of the woman's shift passed in a slow, eternal agony. Finally, the clock struck three and she handed the keys to the cash register over to her co-worker. "Have a good day!" she called over her shoulder, making her way down the aisles.

_Cats, birds, fish, tropical animals, horses...ah! Here we go, dogs._ Turning down the aisle, she scanned the collars for something that would fit the large dog in the clinic. "Oh, this is cute," she giggled, picking up a pink collar with white rabbits running around it. "But too girly for him." She put it back. Tor scanned the shelves, searching for just the right collar. "Now this is nice." Her eyes landed on a black leather collar with a silver trim. "And it's on sale too. With my twenty percent discount and this already half off, it's only going to cost me five bucks!" she crowed happily. "And now to make a tag."

The young woman dug out a five dollar bill from her pocket, feeding it into the machine at the front of the store. _State, Texas. Address, 1402 Vine Lane, Apt number 332. Zip code, 77568. Phone number, 665-228-8932. Pet name, Sess. Design, Texas Tag. There, done._ She pressed the "print" button and watched as the machine imprinted the information onto the Texas shaped dog tag.

Tor smiled as she reached down and picked the tag from the slot. She made her way to the check out she had vacated only moments before, making her purchase and leaving with another farewell to her friends. The young woman walked out to her old truck, digging the keys from her pocket and unlocking the driver's side door. Plopping down in the front seat, she sat there for a moment, working the tag onto the collar.

"Done," she sighed three minutes later. Setting the tag in the passenger seat next to the rest of her stuff, she scooted the rest of the way in. She rolled down the window as she started up the old truck.

Ten minutes later, she pulled into the clinic parking lot. The tech was pleasantly surprised to see Bon out with Sess on a leash, allowing him to sniff around and do his business. She threw her old truck into park as she hopped out. Walking quickly to her co-worker, she completely ignored the dog as she talked to the woman.

"How's he doin'?" she asked.

"He's doing much better, better than we expected," the older woman replied. "It seems he's a real trooper with a great healing rate. Anyway, Doctor Mack had me take him out to let him do his stuff. He hasn't really moved since the surgery and we really don't want to clean up a mess from someone his size."

Tor rolled her eyes at this. "Ya, I understand. Keiko had another mess for me to clean up last night when I got home."

Bon shook her head. "I don't see why you don't just get rid of that dog. She's such a trouble maker for you."

The younger woman sighed, crossing her arms over her chest as she replied. "Well, it's just that she's such an old dog and older dogs have a much smaller adoption rate than younger dogs, or smaller dogs, do. Besides, she was my...second rescue," Tor responded after a moment's pause for thinking.

"Whatever." The tech who was holding Sesshomaru's leash wasn't paying much attention to him so the white dog took this opportunity to reach a tree a little ways down from where she was letting him roam. He gave a good lunging jerk on the leash, managing to make it to the spot he desired to sniff. "Whoah!" Bon cried, tripping and stumbling. "I didn't think he could do that with his leg!"

Tor laughed heartily. "It looks like someone is feeling better!" She walked over to where her newest dog was sniffing, kneeling down to his level but still ignoring him. The woman shook her head at the quizzical look from her co-worker. "It's a part of establishing the dominance. He has to come to me first."

Sesshomaru, however, wasn't paying attention to what his new owner was saying. Instead, he had finally managed to find the right spot to relieve himself. Gratefully, he walked over to the shrub, lifting his leg and urinating. When he was done, he finally took notice of the newest woman who had arrived. She was the same one from last night, and, if he wasn't mistaken, the one who kept calling him "baby." Slowly, and on stiff legs, he walked up to her, giving her a thorough sniffing.

Tor simply sat there, content to ignore the dog for now. When he reached his head out to sniff her hands, she obligingly lifted them and placed one on his head, gently stroking him. Sesshomaru stiffened immediately, but relaxed after a moment. He could tell this woman meant him no harm.

"Hey, Sess," she called gently. The white dog raised his head to look her in the eyes. Gold and green clashed, locking together for a moment before his attention was taken away by the sound of a trailer rattling into the clinic drive. His ears perked up and his tail raised, a low growl issuing from his throat. "Eh!" Tor called, giving the leash a sharp yank to regain the dog's attention. "No, sir. No."

Sesshomaru turned his head to look back at her, confused that she would correct him for growling at something that was a possible threat. "Hey, listen. If you're going to live with me, you have to listen to me. The trailer isn't going to mess with you, and the cows aren't either. Calm down," she told him, gently stroking his head once more. He sighed and huffed, forgetting the trailer. _Whatever,_ he thought mulishly.

Tor stood and stretched. "I've got a present for you, Sess," she laughed, walking back to her truck. The dog ignored her, though, still sniffing around in the grass. When the young woman returned, she held a collar in her hand.

_No,_ Sesshomaru thought, _I will_ not _wear a collar!_ The tech knelt down, stretching her hand out to him and gently calling him. _Damn dog curiosity!_ he thought as he slowly walked towards her. She held out the collar for him, allowing him to sniff it. The next thing he knew, he was wearing it.

The techs laughed at the quizzical look on his face. Sesshomaru sat down, raising his hind leg to try and scratch the itchy thing off his neck. Failing in that attempt, he huffed once more, settling for giving the girl who had put it on him a dirty look. This was the first chance he had to really asses her.

She was tall, around five foot eight inches. She wasn't skinny but she wasn't fat either. Sesshomaru had once heard someone call it "solid." The girl's eyes were a soft emerald green, reflecting the current amusement she felt. Her hair was a soft brown, flowing gently in the light breeze of the afternoon. It hung loose and barely brushed her shoulders. The young woman reached up one calloused hand to tuck a fly-away behind her ear, smiling as she did so.

Two days later, Tor appeared once more, this time ready to take him home. "Are you ready to go home, Sess?" she asked him excitedly. She attached a leash to the collar, leading him out of the clinic and towards her old truck. They stopped at the passenger side door and she opened it.

Sesshomaru didn't know how he was expected to get in. While he was able to walk fairly well, he knew he wouldn't be able to jump into the cab. He was surprised when he saw the woman kneel down, even more so when he felt her strong arms wrap around his chest and under his stomach, lifting him to the passenger seat. The white dog squirmed for the moment he was in the air, before settling down as he feet found purchase on the bench seat of her truck.

"Now stay," she told him, dropping the leash beside him as she shut the door. Tor walked around to the driver's side, hopping in and cranking up the truck. The young woman noticed her dog panting so she leaned across the seat, rolling down his window half way. This allowed the white dog to stick his head out the window, much to both truck occupant's pleasure.

Fifteen minutes later, they had left the apartments' elevator and were walking down the hall towards Tor's apartment. They reached the door and the young woman lead him inside. She looked around warily for a moment and Sesshomaru sniffed the air. _Dogs, five of them and a cat, he thought. Three female dogs and the cat is a male._ His nose told him all he needed to know. One of the females was an old bitch, and had a problem holding her bowels apparently. His nose tingled and he sneezed twice.

Tor reached down and petted his head absentmindedly. Sesshomaru looked up at her, he could sense she was apprehensive about something, that set him on edge as well. His head whipped around to the front as he heard a low growl coming from around the corner. The white dog had his ears up as the old female rounded the corner, her sights set on him.

&&&&

A/N: Read the above note then review. Arigatou.


	3. Encounters of the Violent Kind

Chapter Dedication: Deep Blu and Libby, the awesomest beta-fish in the world. May ya'll rest in fishy peace.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and co. or Science Diet. Sun-L is a real company but I don't own it. I do own a four-wheeler by them, though, and my little brother has a dirt bike. But I do own Sisters in Fate, Torani and co., and the spells that I use. Plus, Mi-mi's Books. If you want to use something of mine, simply ask and explain. ;D

"Speech"

Actions

'Beast/Animal Speech'

_'mind speech' _

_thoughts _

Queen of the Kennel

Chapter 3:

Encounters of the Violent Kind

_Previously in Queen of the Kennel:_

_Tor reached down and petted his head absentmindedly. Sesshomaru looked up at her, he could sense she was apprehensive about something, that set him on edge as well. His head whipped around to the front as he heard a low growl coming from around the corner. The white dog had his ears up as the old female rounded the corner, her sights set on him._

&&&

Tor watched as Keiko rounded the corner, her head lowered, her teeth bared and her sights set on Sess. Quickly, she moved in between the two dogs, effectively blocking Sess from the old bitch's view.

However, that didn't stop the Border collie. She was intent on getting rid of this newcomer, whose scent she recognized from Tor's clothing the past few days. She lunged, her jaws open and aiming for the white dog or anything she could grab.

The female tech didn't expect this kind of ferocity from the bitch. She recovered instantly, though, stepping back and shoving Sesshomaru aside then bringing up her booted foot and connecting it with the other dog's stomach. The young woman watched with mixed emotions as her oldest dog went down with a pained yelp.

Tor turned and grabbed a spare leash off the wall, quickly creating a makeshift muzzle on Keiko. She tightened it forcefully, but not enough to really hurt the old dog.

"Now," she said with a bit of a frown. "You will behave or I will lock you up or get the magic shot, one or the other."

'Stupid human,' Keiko growled in anger.

"Tch, no!" Tor corrected with a quick jab. "I am in no mood for your shit today. Stop it or I swear. You have caused me more trouble than you're worth so I would have no qualms putting you down."

Sesshomaru watched the proceedings from the sidelines with growing interest. _Why would the old bitch seek to harm the one who takes care of her?_ He thought curiously. Talk about biting the hand that feeds you. He had no intentions of taking the territory away from the female, or harming any pups that may have been about. Yet she had acted like he was a dangerous threat to her well being or that of her pack mates. The white dog gave a mental shrug before turning his attention to the audience of canines that had gathered.

There were four other dogs that sat around in various positions of the living room, watching with mild interest. A medium sized black female stood, slowly making her way towards him.

Her head didn't reach Tor's waist and her paws were wide and flat. Her face had the hints of lab in it while her lean body spoke of a setter or pointer of some breed. The young bitch's ears were perked up at him and her tale was in line with her back and wagging slowly.

'I am Duccette,' she greeted shyly, touching noses with the much larger dog. 'What is your name?'

'Sesshomaru,' he instantly responded. It seemed this little female was merely curious and had no intentions of harming him.

'I apologize, Sess…Sess…," she stumbled a bit over his name.

The white dog gave a mental sigh. 'Call me Sess,' he said simply.

A canine smile formed on the young one's face. 'Sess, I'm sorry about Keiko and I hope you don't think that we're all like that,' she grimaced. 'She's a real bitch, in both senses of the word. She can be pretty mean, even to us. No one is really sure why Tor keeps her around but she's been with her longer than the rest of us. Come on!' Duccette said suddenly, a cheerful note to her voice now. 'I'll show you the rest of the pack.'

Sesshomaru followed quietly behind as the little female led him over to the three remaining dogs. All wagged their tales happily in welcome to the newest addition to their little pack.

'Sess, this is Mac. He's the second oldest.'

The brown and white broke coated Jack Russell male stepped forward, balancing on his hind legs to sniff noses with the great white dog. 'It's a pleasure to meet you. Please excuse Keiko. No one really likes her. We tend to think Tor keeps her around for sentimental reasons. Welcome to our little pack. There isn't much to know and what rules are in place are really easy to learn.

'First of all, no messing up the house. We know Keiko does it, but she does it to spite Tor,' Mac explained.

'Trust me when I say you will have no worries about that as far as I am concerned,' Sesshomaru said in a rather bored tone.

'Good. Second is we are all equal under Tor. She is our alpha and we are all betas. Third, we are fed twice a day. If we get lucky, Tor might give us treats for no reason or for doing tricks. What tricks she teaches us are really simple and rather fun. We'll get to that later, though. The fourth rule is we are allowed on any piece of furniture we chose, as long as we get off when told. Fifth is no barking at the door or strangers unless they are a threat. That last part I added myself,' the Russell added as a side note.

_Interesting, so even though they are all 'betas' to Tor's 'alpha' they still look to him_, Sesshomaru thought, cataloguing that information away for a later date.

'And the last thing is no jumping on strangers or laying all over them unless invited by them to do so. That's it. Any questions before I introduce the rest of the pack?' Sesshomaru shook his head no and Mac continued.

The other Border collie stepped up. She wasn't the typical black and white of her breed. Instead, she was liver and white. The soft, rich brown covered the majority of her body. It blanketed her back and hind legs, leaving just the tip of her hind paws and tail white. The color stretched up to mask her face like a hood. Her muzzle was white and a thin white stripe ran up the center of her head. The female's entire chest and forelegs were a snowy white. Obviously, she took great cares for her appearance.

'My name is Lily,' she said, dipping her head after sniffing noses with him.

'Lily, you have an accent,' Sesshomaru said before he could catch himself.

A wry smile appeared on the female's face. 'Yes, I do. My former owners were Chinese Americans, although they spoke Chinese better than English. They were not the best of owners. They were very abusive and rarely fed me. When I was fed or given fresh water, it was barely enough to keep me alive.

'Tor was driving down my road one day in search of Mac who'd run off.' Here Mac looked away from their conversation. If he had been human, he would have blushed. 'She found me chained to their front porch. I was nearly dead. She was absolutely enraged at them.' The female chuckled quietly at her first memory of the striking woman. 'She threatened to call the police if they didn't hand me over to her. Of course, my humans weren't legal immigrants and they quickly complied. Tor called the police anyway. I'm not sure whether or not they were deported, but as long as they remained in this country they were not allowed to own animals.'

'I see. So has Tor rescued you all in some form or fashion?' the white dog asked.

'Yes, she has, although not all of our stories are as striking as hers,' Jezebel, the Golden retriever said, stepping forward. 'I'm Jezebel. She found me lying in the streets, covered in muck of all sorts. She brought me home and bathed me, fed me and took care of me. I came after Mac but before Lily. Duccette is the newest addition, aside from you, to our pack.' The golden female was more of a deep, russet red than they typical blonde golden of her breed. She was also the tallest of the group, her head reaching to Tor's hips. Her forelegs were slender yet her paws were large, typical of a water retrieval dog.

'You already know Duccette. Her story is a simple one. She was the runt of her litter and her mother pushed her away. Her mother was Tor's earliest dog. She came even before Keiko. Tor tried several times to reintroduce her back to the litter but each time, Leila pushed her away. So Tor finally gave up and Duccette became her first bottle baby,' Jezebel explained.

'I notice there are no others, though. What happened to Leila?' Sesshomaru asked. It would not due to have a dog sneak up on him in the middle of the night and try to attack him like Keiko had. If he was to survive in this life, and he had every intention of doing so, he needed to be aware of each and every aspect of his environment.

All the dogs looked sad for a moment. Mac was the first to speak. 'Tor had to put her to sleep. She was bitten by a rabid wolf and came down with the disease despite having her rabies shot.' A quiet and somber mood pervaded over the small group. That is, until Keiko's furious snarling was once more heard.

'Let me go you idiot!' the black and white bitch cried. She was pawing desperately at her snout, trying in vain to remove the make-shift muzzle. Tor, however, had a firm hold on the leash and was not about to let go. She calmly held on until the dog finally gave in, slumping to the floor with exhaustion. After a moment, the tech picked the dog up in her strong arms, carrying her down the hall and depositing her in the spare bedroom.

She looked on with sad eyes at the weary dog. "I really wish you would just behave, Keik. You used to be so sweet. What happened to you, girl? Huh?" Slowly, Tor removed the muzzle, turning and leaving the dog on the bitch's bed. Closing the door, she sighed and slumped to the floor, her head in her hands.

The pack, which had followed her down the hall, swarmed the young woman, sniffing, licking and throwing themselves in her lap. She laughed as she was "attacked" by her beloved pets, throwing her hands up in surrender. She gave each dog a couple of minutes of individual attention before standing and making her way to the bathroom. Sesshomaru stood back and watched the proceedings with interest. _They really love her_, he thought. _They care for her deeply and it hurts them to see her hurt by Keiko's behavior. Why? Why do they feel so strongly about this simple, human woman?_ He pondered all these things as he observed their little ritual.

Tor stood with one hand on the bathroom door, watching her white dog and wondering. _What will his reaction to George be?_ she thought hesitantly. Steeling herself, she opened the door. Out shot the fat black feline, winding its way around her ankles before it noticed the new dog. It took a step forward, arching its back and hissing at the newcomer.

'Stranger!' he hissed. 'What do you want in this house? This is my territory!'

"George!" Tor scolded, booting her cat softly in the bottom. "Be nice! He's new and he's staying." She stood there, her arms akimbo and her face stern. "You will be nice." The young woman looked up at her newest dog. He simply sat there, panting lightly and watching the cat with mild interest. "See," she continued. "He's not going to hurt you. Now go say hi." The tech reached out with her foot, gently scooting the animal forward to the dog.

'George, huh?' Sesshomaru smirked. 'What a...fitting name. It has a heavy sound to it.'

'Mangy cur!' the black feline hissed angrily.

The white dog lowered his head and growled. 'Let me assure you, _cat_, this form may be nothing more than a mangy cur but there is much more than meets the eye. I would suggest you hold your tongue, lest you find it being shoved down your throat.'

"Stop it you two! I've had enough crap for one night and don't need anymore," Tor's angry voice cut through the tension that had been building.

'Sess!' Mac called. 'I'm sorry but I forgot one last rule. Don't mess with the cat.'

Sesshomaru sniffed indignantly. 'As if I would waste my time on an overweight feline.' The group of dogs snickered at his haughty reply and George's angry hiss. 'He's not even worth biting.'

That did it. George lunged for the dog, only to be caught in Tor's arms. "Alright you two. Enough is enough. George, you're going back to the bathroom since you started it. I'll feed you in a moment." She promptly dumped the cat back in the bathroom, chuckling the whole time. "Well, that went well! Alright, guys, it's dinnertime!"

All the dogs, save Sesshomaru, shot off to the kitchen. Each one sat at their bowls, staring intently at the empty piece of dishware.

"Come on, Sess," the brunette said, unhooking the dog's leash and beckoning him to follow her. "It's time to eat. Poor thing, you're practically skin and bones."

The enormous dog followed the woman into her small kitchen obligingly. He merely sniffed at the food that was offered to him, though. _She expects me to eat this? I can smell the chemicals and the products used to give this food its flavor. This Sesshomaru will not eat such filth._

Tor watched with growing concern as the skinny dog refused to eat. "Come on, baby. Eat," she begged him, getting down on his level and trying to hand feed him. "Please, do it for me."

Still, he refused to eat. After several fruitless attempts at getting him to eat, she stood with a depressed sigh. "What am I going to feed you? Well, you ate at the clinic. I'll check tomorrow and see what they fed you there."

&&&&

Kagome frantically ran about her small apartment, making sure everything was set for her little trip to Ayumi's. She had talked with her landlord and made the arrangements for the summer. All her mail would be forwarded to Ayumi's address and she wouldn't be billed anything except the minimal rent. Meaning that her total payment for the summer would only be forty dollars. She wasn't going to be charged for electricity or utilities since she wasn't going to be using them. This left her with plenty of money for spending in Midtown.

"Finally," she sighed as she loaded the last of her luggage in her Prius. Closing the lid of the trunk, she leaned against her car and wiped the sweat off her forehead. "It certainly is hot today. I can't believe they said its going to be over one hundred degrees by ten!" Groaning, she stood and went back inside her home, double checking to make sure she had everything. Satisfied, she closed and locked her front door before sliding into the driver's seat and turning the AC all the way up. On her way out of the complex, she stopped at the main office and paid what little bill for the month there was.

Three days later, she pulled into the driveway of Ayumi's little flat in the suburbs of Midtown. It was a nice place, not too big not too small. It had two bedrooms, a living/dining area, a small kitchen and two bathrooms. There was an attached garage and a mentionable backyard. All in all, it was a cute little bachelorette flat with a decidedly country air to it.

So cute! Kagome thought with a mental squeal when she first saw the place. The priestess shut off the engine of her little car and got out, walking up to her high school friend's front door. She raised her hand to knock on the door when it was suddenly thrown wide open and there in the door way was Ayumi.

"Kagome!" she exclaimed. "I'm so glad you could make it. It's been so long since we've seen each other; it'll be good to get reacquainted. Well don't just stand there. Come in, come in!"

The raven haired woman smiled brightly. "Thanks, Ayumi. I've got to get my stuff out of my car real quick."

"Here, I'll help." The two friends walked back to the driveway and dragged all three of Kagome's bags to Ayumi's flat. She showed Kagome where her bedroom was going to be located and where everything was. Once they had gotten the older woman settled, both girls decided an outing was in order. So Kagome gathered her purse and keys once more, moving her car out of the way for Ayumi to pull out of the one car garage.

"So, where are we going?" Kagome asked as she sat down, buckling her seatbelt and rolling down the window. "It feels so much better here than it does in California." She fanned herself lightly as Ayumi pulled out of the drive.

"Ya, I imagine so. They say it gets in the hundreds every day. Here, it gets in the upper nineties. If you don't like the weather, though, just wait around a few minutes and it'll change!" Ayumi chirped merrily.

"What?!" the priestess laughed. "What on earth does that mean?"

"Well, the weather changes so much around here it seems logical. A perfect example is last year around Easter. The day before Easter it was snowing. Imagine that, snowing in East Texas! Anyway, the day before it was snowing and the next day it was in the eighties."

"Are you serious?" the older woman asked incredulously. "That is absolutely unreal! I never would have imagined something like that." _Even the weather in the Sengoku Jidai wasn't that volatile._

"Absolutely. I guess it comes from being so near to the coast and all," the younger girl shrugged. "Anyway, what kind of music do you listen to?"

"Anything and everything," Kagome said with a grin, settling back in the seat.

"Alright, you asked for it!" Ayumi grinned before turning her radio all the way up and rolling down her windows. She sang and bounced along with the music, keeping one eye on the road at all times. Both women's hair blew in the wind, fluttering about their faces and annoying them to no end.

"What on earth is this?!" she yelped, covering her ears. Her blue eyes looked at the digital readout. "KIKX 105? What station is that?"

"Country!" her friend yelled over the radio. "The best genre of music in the world. You know what country music does? It tells a story!" The girl continued her bouncing and singing with gleeful abandon. "She thinks my tractor's sexy. It really turns her on..."

"Sexy tractors? What kind of story is that?"

"A lot of Kenney Chesney's music is like that. It's saying that the girl likes his tractor. She thinks it's sexy when he's on it. And, obviously, 'it really turns her on'," Ayumi tittered good-naturedly. "Anyway, we're gonna go and visit the humane society. Because frankly, girl, you need a dog or a cat or some sort of pet. You can't live alone."

"You don't have one," Kagome pointed out. She was a little annoyed that Ayumi had brought up the sensitive subject of pets. The priestess was still getting over the death of Buyou. The sweet, over-weight cat had been hit by a car and Kagome had to have him euthanized due to his injuries.

"I'm sorry, Kagome, I forgot about Buyou. But, honestly, it's been nearly a year since he died."

"You still didn't answer my question," the passenger huffed, turning her gaze to focus on the scenery outside her window. The trees flashed by and she had to turn her attention to something else to prevent car-sickness. The sky overhead was a nice substitute. The clear, crystal blue filled her vision. Its beauty was only compounded when an occasional fluffy white cloud flitted across her line of site. _Oh,_ she thought absently, _that one looks like a dog._ The young woman laughed a little giddily in her head when she recognized the shape of the dog. _It almost looks like Sesshomaru's true form. He wouldn't be anywhere around here, though. I bet he's still somewhere in Japan, lording over some book or another for some huge multi-million dollar company. Still, I wonder how he's doing. No one has seen him since he dumped Rin, Jaken and Ah-Un with us. All he said was he 'had a lead' and couldn't pass up the opportunity. I'll have to get him back for dumping Jaken too. The least he could've done was take that slimy little toad with him._ She shuddered when she remembered all the nasty glares the green youkai had sent her way over the years they had stayed with her group.

Ayumi's silence finally drew Kagome out of her thoughts. Turning to look at her friend, she noticed the younger woman's features were drawn together in an almost pinched manner. If the priestess didn't know any better, she would have sworn that the other girl seemed...regretful.

"Ayumi?" she asked softly.

The driver sighed heavily, finally coming out of her own reverie. "I did have a pet," she began quietly. Kagome kept her mouth shut. She had an instinctual knowledge that if she interrupted now, she might never hear the rest of this story. "I had a beautiful female dog. Her name was Crystal. She wasn't any particular breed but she was sweet all the same. Anyway, Crystal accidentally got pregnant, I'm still not sure how, and I debated on aborting the litter and having her spayed. I decided on keeping the pups. Crystal gave birth to five pups. One, though, was very curious. It was a little male. His coat was pure white and the one time I saw his eyes, they were a striking gold."

Kagome sucked in her breath at the description. _Could something have happened to Sesshomaru? Nah..._ she dismissed the thought as quickly as it had come. When Ayumi didn't continue, Kagome thought over what her friend had said. Something struck her as odd about the last statement. When it finally came to her what was wrong, the priestess immediately questioned her friend. "What do you mean 'the one time I saw his eyes'? Surely you saw them more than once!"

Ayumi shook her head as tears came to her eyes. "No, like I said, I only saw them once. One afternoon, right before I went to work, I let Crystal and the pups out in the yard. I left them there, feeling secure in the knowledge that they would be fine for a few hours. After all, this was a safe neighborhood." She gave a mirthless chuckle.

"Oh, Ayumi," Kagome sighed, already knowing something bad was going to happen. "What happened to them?"

The woman shook her head, her lips compressed into a thin line. "I think somebody stole them. When I got home, the back gate had been broken down and they were all missing. I put posters all over the place looking for them. Hoping against hope that I would at least find one of the pups. I never did. No one ever called. It's been three years now and I still haven't gotten over their loss. I know I'm a hypocrite for telling you to get over your cat when I'm still not over my dogs. She was my first dog in America, though, and that meant a lot to me." She sniffed and wiped her eyes, smudging her mascara a little in the process.

"Ayumi, I don't think of you as a hypocrite. Every body handles grief in a different way. Buyou kept me company through all my...illnesses in high school and he was sort of my rock when I moved to California. He was the only thing I knew," Kagome explained. The two women sat for a while, content to remain quiet. After a few minutes, though, Kagome decided to do a little questioning. She knew her friend well enough to know that Ayumi was not the type to go and buy a pet on a whim. "How did you get Crystal?"

Ayumi's smile brightened some. "Tor gave her to me. She rescues dogs and adopts them out. Crystal was one of her more special cases. The poor baby had been severely abused by her former owners. When Tor first got her, she was extremely timid and rather aggressive. It took her nearly a year, I'm told, to break her of all her bad habits. When we first met, she was having her 'adoption day' in the Wal-Mart parking lot. She had Crystal as well as several other dogs in the back of her pickup. I guess you could say it was love at first sight. After that, we kept in pretty close contact until she moved. I'll have to ask her parents when she's coming back for a visit," she said thoughtfully.

Kagome was grateful that her friend had made friends in the time she had spent in this country. The young woman knew friends made all the difference when you're stranded in a strange place. Or time, in her case. "I'd like to meet this Tor. She sounds like a nice person, Yu-yu," the priestess quipped with a smile.

The two women laughed at the nickname. They chattered aimlessly as they continued on to the animal shelter. A couple of hours later, they were once more on the road, this time, they were headed to Ayumi's shop.

"I can't believe you didn't like a single animal in there!" Ayumi cried incredulously as she changed lanes.

"Well," Kagome said slowly. "It wasn't so much that I didn't like the animals there. It was that I didn't feel any connection with them. I mean, when I first saw Buyou as a skinny kitten," both girls snickered at the thought of a skinny Buyou, "he looked at me with his yellow eyes and I looked at him and we just...connected. We were nearly inseparable from that day forward."

"I know what you mean. I felt something like that when I first met Crystal. Oh! I know! That's what I'll do!"

"Do what? What are you going to do? I think I missed something..." the priestess lamented, slumping back into her seat. She knew that look in her friend's eye. It was the same look when she was about to be informed of one of her "dates" with Hojo. Not that any of those turned out like they had been planned... Leave the inane musings for another time, Kagome, she mentally reprimanded herself. _Right now, focus on Ayumi's plan and getting out of it if necessary._

"I'll get Tor's number from her parents and call her! I'm sure she'll have a dog that you would love. She has always been able to find a good match for her animals and clients," the woman explained. She just knew her plan would work. Nothing could go wrong when one had the best of intentions in mind. Right?

&&&&

"I can't believe all you will eat is Science Diet coat formula with Mix-it!" Tor lamented, throwing her hands in the air as she watched Sess scarf down the serving she had given him. "I mean come on! That stuff is like ten dollars a bag, if not more! And that's not including the wet food." She groaned and sank back into her couch, covering her face with her hands.

_What is she upset about?_ Sesshomaru mildly wondered. _This is the only food where I can't smell the chemicals. Plus it tastes good with the wet food in it._ He gave a dog like shrug and returned to his meal.

"The things I do for my animals," the woman groaned again. "Well, there's no time like the present to test your temperament." This said, the young woman shooed her other dogs from the room, locking them in the guest bedroom before returning. She watched the large white dog eat for a moment, moving to stand by his side. She reached down and placed a hand on his back, gently moving it up and down after he relaxed and continued to eat.

Squatting, the young woman ran her hands down the back legs of the large dog. She began to talk gently to him when he stiffened. "Easy, boy. I'm not going to do anything." Tor continued her perusal of the dog's body when he began to eat again. Slowly but surely, she made her way to his head. She corrected him at his growl of warning and continued when he began to eat again. Gently, the tech reached up and fondled his ears, speaking softly the entire time. Satisfied with his reactions, she stood and stretched before making her way to her hall closet. Digging around in the mess for a moment, she came up again with a fake human hand and arm. The young woman used the appendage to pet Sess's face and muzzle as he finished his meal. Steeling her nerve, she moved the arm down to the bowl itself, gently pulling it with her.

Sesshomaru stepped back from the exercise and gave the woman a quizzical look. _What on earth are you doing?_ he thought. He couldn't figure this woman out. First she talked sweet to him, then she started to rub her hands all over him as he ate his food before finally messing with his face. She didn't like it when he growled at her to get her to back off and seemed proud when he didn't attack the fake hand. _As if that thing could hurt me. She doesn't let her animals get skinny. From the look of the cat, she has a tendency to over feed if nothing else. There is no reason for me to be upset with her but I can't figure her out._

"Good, boy," Tor praised her dog effusively. "That's a good boy. You are a very good dog. Now, one last test and we'll be through for the evening." She sat cross-legged on the floor of her living room apartment with the food bowl right in front of her. "Let's see how well you do if I mess with what little food is left while you are eating it. Come here," she beckoned to the dog.

The white dog slowly walked forward, keeping his eyes on the smiling woman at all times. Tentatively he lowered his head and began to eat again. He froze, though, when she put her hands in the food bowl with him. After a moment of inactivity from her, he began to eat again. He finished the last of his meal except for what was on her fingers. He was sorely tempted to lick the food off her hands, it was just _that_ good to him. After all, he hadn't been treated so kindly in all the years he was a dog, not that he could remember anyway.

"I know you want to lick 'em," the tech laughed. "It's written all over your face. Go on, go ahead and lick. I don't care." Her offer was certainly tempting and Sesshomaru found himself taking a step towards her. Tor's face lit up with a smile as he continued towards her, stopping right before her hands.

Sesshomaru gave the digits a wistful sniff. That was his undoing. Giving into temptation, he leaned forward and slowly licked the fingers clean of all traces of the food. His ears perked up at the woman as he heard her peals of laughter. He didn't understand what was so funny about him licking her fingers clear of his food.

When he was through, he gave a huffing sigh and sat back on his haunches, eyeing the woman before him. Tor hadn't quit smiling since he stepped forward and licked her hands. Somehow, she knew there was something inside of him that would connect them forever more. It gave her a niggling feeling in the back of her mind. Promptly shrugging it off, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the dog's neck. She leaned into him, cheek to cheek, as she hugged him fiercely.

"You're just a big sweaty who doesn't want anyone to know," she whispered playfully into his ear. It twitched and flicked as her breath blew over its outer shell and into the sensitive inner organs. Laughing lightly, she scooted closer to him and moved her head to his shoulder. Sighing deeply, she inhaled his musky scent. She chuckled again when she heard him sigh. Tor pulled back and watched him for a moment.

Sesshomaru watched as the young woman inspected him again before her eyes grew distant and thoughtful.

_I wonder when the next meeting is._ she thought absentmindedly. _It should be any day now. I need to get that day off._ Standing and stretching, Tor walked over to her calendar and studied its dates closely. Her soft green eyes perused the marked squares until it came to one day that had two stars on it. "Oh crap!" she exclaimed. "It's day after tomorrow! Well, I guess I'll talk to Jenny tomorrow and get the day off. I can't miss another one. They'd probably come and drag my butt to it." She snorted derisively. "I wouldn't put it past Cane. That woman is going to push me too far one of these days."

Her shoulders slumped with a weariness the dog found disconcerting. "I'm so tired," she mumbled under her breath. "So very tired. Yet, I can't get any rest." A harsh, barking laugh ripped its way from her throat. The white dog nearly tucked his tail and backed away from the look in her now stony eyes. It put his old mask of indifference to shame. "No rest for the weary. Not even for those whose lives had been filled with more pain than a single human should ever have to bear."

Sesshomaru wondered if this woman had gone insane. There was a presence about her that reminded him of something...he just couldn't figure out what it was. A low growl rumbled in his chest as she turned to him.

"What?" Tor asked as she turned her softened gaze to him. Sadness now reflected in her emerald orbs. Sesshomaru had never seen sadness in her eyes. Happiness, anger, frustration, every emotion except sadness. He wondered what could have caused the absolute _depth_ of sadness he saw. "Are you going to turn on me too? Hopefully not. I really like you." She sighed again. It was a hollow, resigned sound. "Come on, boy. Bedtime."

Motioning for her dog to follow, she led him down the hall towards the bedrooms. Sesshomaru did as bid, walking past her to the guest room where the dogs normally stayed.

"No no," she said gently. "I can tell it's going to be one of those nights and I'm going to need something solid. Come on with me." The young woman motioned to him to come to her bedroom.

Sesshomaru was greatly confused. He had practically free roam of the house. But when bedtime came, he, along with all the other dogs, were put into the guest room. Apparently Tor had a thing about dogs in her bed. Giving a mental shrug, he gave up on that line of thinking and walked into her room.

It was a decent sized room but sparsely populated in the ways of furniture. There was a dresser and vanity along one wall with a mirror hanging above the vanity. Next to the dresser was a basket that Sesshomaru suspected held her dirty clothes. Right beneath a high window on the opposite wall of the door was a king sized bed. A night-stand was situated on either side of the bed. There was a small lamp perched on the right hand table. Several pillows filled the bed along with a messy comforter and sheet that looked like someone had fought their way out of it.

Tor shut the door behind her dog and walked over to the dresser, peeling off her clothes and dumping them in the basket before yanking on a pair of lounge pants and an extra-large t-shirt. The young woman flopped wearily down onto the bed, curling up in a ball beneath the covers. She sat up, though, when she didn't see Sess at the side of her bed.

"Sess," she called. "Come here, boy."

The dog sighed, getting up from his position on the floor in front of her door and walking to the side of her bed. He gave her a look that clearly stated his annoyance at the disruption of his routine.

Tor, however, took no notice of his displeasure. Instead, she patted the bed beside her. "Up up," she commanded. "Get up here. I want you up here tonight. I'm probably going to need something solid."

Sesshomaru eyed her warily before jumping onto the bed beside her. He settled down beside her, facing away from her, and listened as she lay down behind him. He felt her bare arms snake around his chest, pulling him closer to her. The scent of salt tickled his nose as she buried her face in his fur.

"Good night," she whispered hoarsely. "If I pull your fur or kick you or something during the night, forgive me. I don't mean it." With that, she promptly drifted off to sleep, her white dog wrapped in her arms.

&&&

A/N: Okay, third chapter. I'm feeling a bit depressed 'cuz my fish died and my older brother got me another one the very same day and it died too. Something is up with my tank and I'm not real happy. That's why this last part was rather...bleak. Plus, there was some very important materials in this. I wonder how many will catch certain wording and hints about the future...feel free to leave your guess in a review. ;D


	4. Bespelled

Chapter Dedication: My older brother. Even though he doesnt want me to know it, he is the best big brother in the world. (He got me another fish. Lol. And this one's living!!)

Sorry for the delay, I had a lot of finals and interviews to take care of these past couple of weeks and my internet absolutely hates me. It's been going in and out for the past week now. The company is supposed to be having technicians working on the lines but...I don't know. Hopefully the chapters will come quicker after this.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and co. or Science Diet. Sun-L is a real company but I don't own it. I do own a four-wheeler by them, though, and my little brother has a dirt bike. But I do own Sisters in Fate, Torani and co., and the spells that I use. Plus, Mi-mi's Books. If you want to use something of mine, simply ask and explain. ;D

"Speech"

Actions

'_Beast/Animal Speech'_

_'Mind speech'_

_Thoughts _

Queen of the Kennel

Chapter 4:

Bespelled

_Previously in Queen of the Kennel: _

_Sesshomaru eyed her warily before jumping onto the bed beside her. He settled down beside her, facing away from her, and listened as she lay down behind him. He felt her bare arms snake around his chest, pulling him closer to her. The scent of salt tickled his nose as she buried her face in his fur._

_"Good night," she whispered hoarsely. "If I pull your fur or kick you or something during the night, forgive me. I don't mean it." With that, she promptly drifted off to sleep, her white dog wrapped in her arms. _

OoOoOo

Tor awoke the next morning, her mind still addled from the dream. _Always the same_, she thought wearily. _Screaming, heat, light and then…nothing_. She shuddered and wrapped her arms around her shoulders, hugging herself. Leaning her head on her bent knees, she breathed deeply for a few minutes before looking around for her dog.

"Sess," she called, seeing he wasn't on the bed. The tech vaguely wondered when he had escaped her grasp. Sighing, she threw off the covers, getting out of bed and peeling her sweat-soaked clothes from her body. The young woman dumped them in the basket, barely noticing how full it was. Getting on her hands and knees, she looked under the bed for her absent dog. "Sess?" she called again, pulling the dust ruffle up and peering in the dusty gloom beneath the bed.

Sitting back up on her knees, she gave a long, low whistle, hoping the animal would respond to her call like normal. Nothing. Beginning to become slightly panicked now, she jumped up and ran across the room, tearing open the door and calling for her dog. "Sess?! Sessy-baby!" _Oh god_, her mind raced, _where could he be?! The door was shut, but that doesn't mean anything since I sleep-walk on occasion._

She groaned and leaned her head on the wall, banging it a couple of times. "Where could a dog that is big enough to ride like a horse be?"

Sesshomaru, for his part, was having a wonderful dream. He was in his true form and was towering over the people who had harmed him in his past lives. Naraku was at the forefront of them, cowering like a stricken animal. Sesshomaru leaned down and snapped the foul hanyou up in his jaws, chomping down with a pleasurable crunch. He absolutely loved the feeling of blood running down his jaws once more; everyone feared him.

Suddenly, though, he heard a high, squealing laughter from behind him. He craned his head around to look at his back. And, to his extreme surprise, found Tor there, seated astride him and nestled in his fur.

"Rock on big dog!" she yelled, one hand fisted and thrust into the air. Lifting her head and exposing her throat, Tor released an astonishing recreation of a howl. To his consternation, Sesshomaru suddenly found himself howling with her.

He came to his senses, though, and did every thing he could think of to dislodge her from his back. She hung on, though, with a tenacity that surprised him. "You ain't getting rid of me that easily, big boy," the young woman cooed, rubbing his back. "I'm like a leech, I've been told. Once I find something I like, I hang on for dear life."

Her words echoed in his head as he awoke from the dream. At first, he didn't know where he was, there was faint light coming through but fabric surrounded him. Slowly, he realized that he was in Tor's bed and had burrowed beneath the covers sometime during the night. He sat up, letting the covers fall around his form. He blinked, looking out at the world. It seemed...different, smaller perhaps.

He blinked again and the moment had passed. Giving a mental shrug, he gave in to the urge to yawn widely before crawling out of the bed. Once on the floor, he stretched before looking around for Tor. He hadn't seen her in the bed and the door to the room was open. It was then that the sound of rhythmic beating against the wall reached him.

Curiosity getting the better of him, he sauntered into the hall to find Tor, completely naked, banging her head against the wall. The words "Where could he be?!" came out in between each thump.

Sesshomaru, extremely intrigued by the unusual behavior of this human woman, sat on his haunches, tilting his head to one side as he watched. After a few minutes, though, her repetitive motions and ignorance of his location bored him. Deciding to have a little fun with her, he crept silently around to her back before sticking his cold, wet nose into the joint of her knee.

Tor screamed at the sensation, nearly scrambling up the wall like a cat in her surprise. She turned around after a minute, a hand placed to her frantically beating heart as she tried to determine the source of her fears. Her eyes widened to comical proportions at the sight of her dog.

"Sess!" she cried, a mixture of joy and relief, shock and anger. The young woman flew to her knees, wrapping the very surprised white dog in a tight hug. "Oh god, dog, don't ever do that to me again!" She hugged him tighter to her, unaware of his extreme mental blushing.

Sure, he had seen women, youkai and human, naked before. He had even rutted with them, but he had never actually hugged a naked one. Her firm, pert breasts pressed against either side of his neck, rubbing the bottom of his muzzle.

She sat back, pulling him into her lap. "Oh, sweetheart, don't you ever do something like that to me again! You nearly gave me a heart attack. Where the hell were you anyway?" Burying her face in the thick fur at his throat, Tor breathed deep, inhaling his spicy dog scent and willing herself to calm down. Her dog was fine, absolutely fine. He was here, in her arms, in her lap, real. No harm was done; he was completely intact.

Smirking at the unintended pun, she let Sess go, standing up and looking down at the animal. If possible, he looked a little...odd. Squatting in front of him, she lifted his lips to inspect his gums and breath. Finding everything in order, the technician let go of the now struggling animal. Tor stood once more, opening the bathroom door. She smiled slightly as George bolted out the door and into the living room, promptly curling up on a pillow in the couch.

Tor shrugged and looked back at the white dog that was looking intently at her. The young woman stuck her tongue out at him. "Pervert," she threw over her shoulder as she entered the bathroom.

Sesshomaru shrugged mentally and lay down in the threshold of the door. His mind drifted as he listened to Tor sing-- horribly off key in a high falsetto-- in the shower. _It has been nearly two weeks since I was hit by that car and Tor adopted me. It pays to obey her to some degree; she is effusive with her "praise" and "treats." I must admit those home-cooked dog bones are quite delicious_. He licked his chops lightly. Simply the thought of those treats set him to drooling. _Last night, before she began to scream and kick, she muttered about going back to the "vet's" today. If she believes she is taking me back to that Kami awful place, she has another think coming,_ he thought to himself. A silent snarl set upon his lips as he heard the shower cut off.

Tor's voice, back to its normal, smooth alto, danced lightly along the musical scale as she dried herself off. Wrapping herself in the large bath towel, she wiped the light fog covering off of the mirror. She checked her face for any blemishes before smiling and making a face in the steam on the mirror.

"Ninety nine nuns in an Indiana nunnery, ninety nine nuns in an Indiana nunnery," she sang softly, voice climbing as she continued. Finally, she reached the highest note and began to descend. She sang a different tune this time. "Coca cola, coca cola, coca cola, Mr. Pib. Coca cola, coca cola, coca cola, Mr. Pib. Dr. Pepper, Dr. Pepper, Dr. Pepper, Seven Up. Dr. Pepper, Dr. Pepper, Dr. Pepper, Seven Up." Sesshomaru thought this woman was going crazy. The door opened, allowing steam to pour into the small hallway.

Sesshomaru still lay in the doorframe. He glanced up out of the corner of his eye and saw that Tor was only wrapped in a towel, one that barely covered her well-curved body. He felt her toe dig into his back as she ordered him to move.

"Move it, lug. I've got to get dressed and you're sprawled all in the door, blocking my way!" She shoved him with her foot, attempting to get him out of the doorway. It didn't do any good. "Listen here, bub, either you move or I'm going to step over you. If I have to go out of my way to step over you, you're so gonna regret it," the brunette threatened.

The white dog huffed, showing no signs of movement.

"I mean it, I'll step over you and don't blame me if I step on your tail or something!"

_If you step over me, I'll close my eyes to make sure I see nothing that will permanently damage my vision and state of mind_, he mentally sneered. Outside, he merely closed his eyes and relaxed.

"Ooh!! Fine then, mutt-face, be that way!" Tor fumed.

Mutt-face? Now where had he heard that before? Oh yes, that was one of the wolf's nicknames for his half-brother. He wondered if this woman knew of the wolf. The dog mentally slapped himself then. _How could she have known the wolf? It is not likely that the "prince" would have left his tribes for this place. No matter how stupid he may have been._ He opened his eyes when he felt water drop onto his face. Much to his horror, he found Tor stepping over him, just as she threatened. Now, he was graced with a nice view of her femininity.

Like lighting, he shot up from his spot, intent on ridding the image of her from his mind. However, what he didn't count on was catching Tor off guard. So, the dog tore off around the apartment, with Tor hanging on for dear life. "Stop!" she shouted. "Whoa! Sit! Heel! Down! Hell, stop 'cuz I ain't lettin' go only to bust my head on the floor, idgit!" The green eyed woman's hands were wrapped tightly in his collar as he gallivanted about her home. "I said heel!" the young woman shouted, leaning back and digging her heels into the carpet in an attempt to stop the enormous white dog. Sesshomaru did stop, but only after a minute or two of struggling to run with her digging into the ground.

He sat down with a plop, sending Tor sliding off his back as he collapsed onto his side, panting hard.

Tor hissed through clenched teeth; her heels burned. Looking down at them, she practically saw them throb in time with her heartbeat. "Damn that hurts!" Gingerly getting to her feet, she walked on tiptoes back to the bathroom, searching for the burn ointment. After nearly three minutes of searching, she found the cream and applied it gently to her abused heels. The young woman made sure they were well coated before tip-toeing to her bedroom and grabbing her cell phone.

She dialed the clinic, waiting for someone to answer.

"West Side Animal Hospital, this is Anna," the voice on the other end chirped in a way-too-perky-for-not-even-eight-in-the-morning tone.

Tor groaned mentally. _She is way too perky_. "Hey, Anna, it's Tor. I just wanted to let you know I'm going to be running about ten minutes late this morning. Apparently Sess doesn't like it when people try to step _over_ him." She was practically growling at this point, glaring daggers at the white dog that had just sauntered into her room as if nothing had happened.

Sesshomaru had the strange urge to stick his tongue out at her, but, seeing as he was a dog and that would not get his message across, he refrained. _Besides_, he thought, _it would merely make me look stupid._

"Oh? Are you alright?" Anna asked, concern lacing her voice, ratcheting it up a note or two.

"Ya, when he wouldn't move out of the bathroom doorway, I started to step over him and he, for whatever reason entered his dense skull..." Sesshomaru curled his lips up in warning when she began to insult him, only to be surprised when Tor returned the gesture. "...took off running. Well, when he jumped up, I was still stepping over him so I was caught on his back. He dragged me all around the apartment and ended up carpet burning my heels. So I'm coming in, and he is too for suture removal, but we'll be about ten minutes late."

"Okay, I'll tell Jenny!" Anna said.

_Again, this chick is waaay too perky_. "Thanks, Anna." the brunette hung up, rubbing her temples as she glared at the white dog. "What? What do you want?" she asked him, not really expecting a response. She got one, though; just not what she would have thought.

Instead of verbally replying to her, Sesshomaru merely stood, turned around, lifted his tail high over his back, and stalked out of the room. An incensed "Why you!!" came from the room he had just vacated. Suddenly though, he no longer heard anger; instead, laughter resonated down the halls and inside his head.

_Why on earth is she laughing? She could not possibly be laughing at anything I have done_. Intrigued, he turned around to find out what was causing the now hysterical laughter.

When he entered the room, he was greeted with the sight of Tor, still in her towel by some miracle, doubled over on her bed and clutching her sides. Hysterical laughter poured from her lips, barely slowing. She finally seemed to have gained some sense of control only to look up at him and begin laughing again. His attempt at cocking an eyebrow only succeeded in throwing her into a fit of hysterics unlike any he'd ever seen before. There seemed to be a point where she actually stopped breathing, her lips turning a faint shade of blue.

Several gasping breaths later, she sat up, smiling and wiping away tears of laughter from her face. "Do you know how much like a cat you just looked?!" she asked, nearly bursting into laughter again. "I mean come on! For someone who didn't really like cats when they met one, you sure do act like one sometimes! After all, cats are cold, aloof, snippy, have arrogance issues and just all around rude sometimes. And that describes you to a 'T'!"

The white dog curled his lips up in a threatening manner, although the action didn't seem to faze the woman. 'This Sesshomaru is not filthy cat!' he growled.

"Ya ya," the tech replied flippantly, waving a dismissive wrist in his direction. This action merely incensed Sesshomaru all the more.

He stalked forward on stiff legs, growling low in his throat. The white dog nearly faltered, though, at the steel in Tor's eyes. He quickly regained his step, heedlessly pressing on, despite the warning in every inch of the young woman's body language.

"If I were you," she all but growled, "I would watch where I step and how I step. There are many things about me you do not know, nor could your feeble mind comprehend."

Sesshomaru snarled again, picking up a little speed in his advance. Suddenly, he found himself pinned to the floor, Tor's hand grasping at the vulnerable spot on his neck. He struggled, trying to free himself, only to find by some miracle, or magic, he was unable to throw the woman off of him. He felt her breath brush his ears as she leaned her head down to his level.

"As I said," she whispered, her breath ghosting across the sensitive organs, causing them to twitch, "if I were you, I'd watch where I step and how I step. There are things in this world you have never been privy to and shall never be; for all your arrogance, you are simply a dog. There are beings out there, myself included, who are smarter, faster, stronger, and better than you in almost every way. Granted, your senses of smell and hearing are more acute than mine; but what I lack in that department, I make up for in areas no longer known by beings of your stature. Submit to me, your Alpha, and your life will be as blessed and long as a dog could hope for. You will want for nothing. You may be the biggest dog I've ever had, and the only Slovensky Kuvac, but you are still a dog and I am still human, for all my 'longevity'. That said, the natural order demands your submission to me. Submit, my pet, submit."

The young woman spoke in a soothing, hypnotic tone and, against all his will and better judgment, Sesshomaru found himself relaxing under her hold. A soft, humming tingle flowed through his body, starting at the point where Tor's hands touched his body. His neck and the area just above his hip tingled heavily, almost as if there were pins and needles in his body; the feeling got softer as it flowed outward from the contact points. After a few minutes of "soothing" murmurs in her dog's ear, Tor picked herself up, watching in grim satisfaction as Sess replicated the action.

The young woman smirked mirthlessly as she watched the dog's internal struggle. Taking pity on him, she squatted to his level and began to rub his head gently. "Don't worry, _mi chico pobre_, the spell will wear off within the hour and you will be good as new. Perhaps a little wiser for the wear, _no_?" She batted her eyelashes coquettishly at him before tossing her towel in the laundry basket and walking to her closet, leaning her nude body against the door frame while she chose the pair of scrubs she wanted to wear today.

"Hmm, shall I wear the form-fitting, deep v, light blue floral print? Or the solid purple and the cargos? What about the one with the Dalmatians on it?" She grinned wickedly. "The deep v shall do just fine today." The tech plucked the scrub top and matching bottoms of the hanger, tossing them on her bed as she rummaged through her dresser in search of some underclothes. Opening up one drawer, she selected a black sports bra with white trim and a pair of black boy-shorts. Again, she tossed the bra on her bed and pulled on the panties, waltzing over to the dresser and applying her deodorant before pulling her bra over her full chest. The brunette tugged on the scrub pants, tightening the drawstring waist, before shrugging into her shirt. She tied the decorative string in the back before selecting a pair of socks and yanking on her boots.

Once she was through, Tor turned her attention back to Sesshomaru, who was swaying slightly. "Come on, boy, let's let everybody eat then you and I will leave. The dog walker should be here within the next hour or so to take everybody out." Turning, the young woman made her way to the spare bedroom, Sess obediently trotting at her heels. A chorus of happy barks and whines could be heard from behind the door, making Tor laugh lightly. "Alright, alright already! I'm here!" she giggled, opening the door and nearly losing her footing in the resultant stampede of dogs. As it was, Sesshomaru _did_ lose his footing, only to bound right back up again after Duccette began giving him a wet morning greeting.

"Come on, guys!!" Tor called, pushing Keiko's paws gently off her chest. "Let's go get some breakfast!" At this, the entire pack of dogs, save the still confused and fighting Sesshomaru, took off in a gallop towards the kitchen and their respective bowls. Each dog stared down at their bowl, tails wagging and brushing the green eyed young woman as she wove her way through the pack towards the food.

Picking up the bag of Ol' Roy dog food, she dished out a cup of food to each dog before switching to the Science Diet bag for Sess. She dumped two cups of food into his bowl and dug out the can of Mix It from the refrigerator. Tor scooped out two tablespoons of the wet food onto the dry food and stirred it around before setting it before the still slightly muffled Sesshomaru. Slowly and deliberately is how the white dog ate, thinking over the events of the morning.

_Perhaps it would be wise to avoid confronting her again,_ he thought mulishly. _There were no indications that she possessed magic. The dogs and cat are not bespelled. That spell has been used on me before, but never with the side-effect of the tingling and humming. I wonder if it is part of her own rendition or if it is some sort of side-effect caused by already being under a spell. If only there were a way to find out. It is entirely frustrating that she does not keep books in her apartment. The human doesn't even have a journal! No matter, I will find out, one way or another._ He finished his breakfast and turned to find Tor watching him while eating a banana.

"You through?" she grinned, taking another bite out of the fruit. "Good, let's go then." The young woman finished off her breakfast, chunking the peel in the garbage and picking the black leash up off the counter and attaching it to the dog's collar. With a slight tug, Tor led Sess out the apartment door, grabbing her purse on the way out. She locked the door from the outside and merrily walked to the parking garage. Unlocking her truck door, she opened it and smirked as Sess obediently jumped inside.

The tech shut the door behind herself after rolling the window down and crossed to the driver's side, hopping in and cranking the old Ford to life. Buckling her seatbelt, Tor threw the truck into reverse and swiftly backed out of her parking spot. The young woman laughed lightly when she saw her dog stumble a bit from the shift shock of the old vehicle. Patting his head, she shifted back into drive and nearly peeled out of the garage, laughing joyously the whole time. She was in a good mood this morning and wasn't going to let anybody, or thing, ruin it!

A few minutes later, the wannabe NASCAR driver and her dog pulled into the clinic parking lot. By this time, unbeknownst to Tor, the spell that had been placed on Sesshomaru had faded completely. This left him in total control of his actions and daw'gonitt, he wasn't going to go in there again! When the tech walked around to open his door, he took his chance to bolt. However, he didn't realize that when she had put him in the truck earlier, she had tied his leash down to the hand grip on the inside of the truck. So when he took off, his owner simply stood back and let him run, watching as he came to a sudden, jerking halt.

With a yelp, Sesshomaru was knocked off his feet and to the asphalt. He stood quickly, though, and began to tug and pull on his leash that was still tied up. It was no use, however; the truck weighed much more than he did and, although that would not have been a problem before he had been cursed, he was now nothing more than a dog. A large dog perhaps, but a dog nonetheless.

Tor, with a smirking grin on her face, sauntered over to where Sesshomaru lay panting like there was no tomorrow. "So I see that my little subjugation spell has worn off. Well, so long as you do not try to attack myself or someone else, unless it's life or death, then I won't do it to you again. Now, come on. Doc is only going to take the stitches out of your side and the cast off your leg. You were already given your shots when you first came in." The tech untied his leash and shut the truck door. She gave a couple of sharp tugs on his leash, encouraging him to follow her.

Sesshomaru, however, had no intention of returning to the clinic, no matter the reason. He planted his butt on the concrete and dug his front paws into the ground in an attempt to make his handler give up by having to haul him. It didn't work. When the tech saw what he had planned, she quickly backtracked and wrapped the leash around Sess's middle, lifted and began to walk. This caused Sesshomaru to have to walk unless he wanted his back end drug in first. Once they got inside, Tor, assuming that her dog would be obedient now, let the leash return to normal.

Once more, Sesshomaru planted his rear in a desperate attempt to stave off the inevitable. This time, though, they were on slick linoleum and the dog's claws were no help to him. She frowned and put the leash over her shoulder, tucked her body, and began to pull. The white dog was amazed at the strength of this human woman as he, slowly but surely, began to slide along the floor. He curled his lips slightly when he heard laughter ring out around him. They were laughing at him! These puny, stupid humans were laughing at him! He really became upset when he heard Tor's laughter in front of him. For some reason, though, when she turned her bright, shining green eyes and laughing smile towards him, he felt his anger melt away in the face of mere indignation. Huffing, he lowered his lips, stood to his feet, curled his tail high over his back and stalked off to where his owner was leading him. He desperately tried to ignore the laughter that multiplied two or three times over in the face of this action.

A minute later, Tor ushered him into a large run in the back of the kennel. She put a towel on the floor for him and a bowl of water at the back of the cage. Stepping out and closing the gate, the young woman placed his name card in the holder and clipped his leash the chain link of the gait.

"Just wait here for a bit, sweetie, they'll be back to get you to remove your stitches and cast. I'll be right there with you. Lord knows what you'd do if I wasn't there to stop you," she said, muttering the last part under her breath.

_As if I would do anything that would get me put to sleep again. It may take but a minute, but the sensation of that drug coursing through my veins is intolerable,_ he thought with a huff. Walking back to the towel, he circled three times before finally laying down to rest. The concrete beneath him was rough and the towel was so thin it may as well have been there at all. Sesshomaru sighed slightly and closed his eyes, allowing his mind to wander back to when life was good for him. Back to the time when he was still Taiyoukai of the Western lands, when Rin followed him faithfully and always counted on him to protect her, when Jaken never shut up and sang his praises in that awfully irritating voice of his. Oh, how he missed those days.

A quiet whimper escaped his lips at these thoughts. However, they were quickly ended as Tor opened the gate and called to him. Lazily, reluctantly, the former Taiyoukai opened his eyes to give her his best glare for interrupting his day dreams. She simply smiled and slipped a leash over his head and around his neck, beckoning him to follow her.

Slowly he rose, still reluctant to leave the field of flowers Rin was playing in. Sess followed his owner out of the noisy kennels and into a quiet treatment room. He walked onto the scale, watching as the numbers flew up. The white dog smirked at the audible gasps from the women behind him at the final weight count. 130 pounds.

"How on earth did you gain ten pounds in five days?!" Tor nearly screeched. "I only feed you twice a day! Good grief!" _What is he going to weigh when it's all said and done?_ she thought frantically. Sighing, she led the dog to the lift table and began to raise it once he was on. When it had reached the correct height, she stopped the machine and stroked her animal lovingly.

A moment later, the doctor came in, looking over the charts. "Morning, Tor. So Sess here is going to have his stitches and cast removed?"

"Yes sir, I've been keep a close eye on both injuries and, oddly enough, it seems as if his wounds are completely healed. And he's using his leg like he doesn't even have a cast on," she shrugged.

"Hmm, okay then. Let's have a look see." Tor and another technician gently turned Sesshomaru to his uninjured side, exposing the stitches and his casted leg. Both women watched as the veterinarian closely inspected the stitching. The man gave a low whistle of appreciation a moment later. "Well, it really does look like the wounds have healed." He removed the soft cast and felt of the white dog's previously injured leg. "And I can't find any hints of breakage or spraining in this leg. Tor, I don't know how or why, but your dog is completely healed. So, we'll just remove the stitches and he'll be good to go." With that, the doctor opened a drawer, removed a pair of medical scissors and promptly began to cut away the stitching. A few minutes passed before he had removed the last of them. "All done. He's good to go, Tor. Just make sure he doesn't do anything that might cause the new skin to rip or his bones to break again."

"Always do, Doc," she said with a smile as the table began to descend and Sess jumped off. Tor lead him back to the kennels, but didn't place him in a run. Instead she took the leash off of him and squatted down to his eye level. (This wasn't very hard, considering _his_ height.) "Okay, boy, listen up. If you behave and promise not to cause any trouble with the other dogs, I'll let you stay out of the run. That means that you cannot leave the kennel. You can walk among the runs and go outside but you can't go to the groom room, the cat ward or anywhere else, ya hear?" With his silence, Tor smiled and ruffled his ears, much to his...pleasure or displeasure? He certainly didn't know how to catalogue this new sensation. He watched as his owner walked away. With a slight sigh, he lay down by the counter and dozed lightly.

Tor, after having put half the kennel in the outside runs, began to wash dishes as her coworker cleaned the runs. She smiled brightly down at her oversized ball of fluff. "You really are nothing but a big puppy, aren't you? You sure are as moody as one." The green eyed woman grinned at this remark and the way he totally ignored her.

A scream was forced from her throat as she was thrown to the ground from an explosion nearby. She landed on her butt, right beside the now _very_ alert Sesshomaru. There was magic in that explosion and he was not going to be caught unaware.

Tor shook her head to clear her vision and looked up. Everything seemed to be frozen in time. Nothing moved, save herself and, somehow, Sess. There were no noises; the water had stopped in mid-flow and the air seemed deathly still. Anger flowing from every pore in her body, the young woman stood to her feet, her hands clenched by her side. Only one person was capable of such a feat.

"Alright, you little bitch, show yourself. What the hell do you want this time?" Tor seethed.

OoOoOo

A/N: Ooohh...what will happen to Tor? What's going on? Find out next time! Now for questions...Is this planned out? Yes and no, I know how Sesshomaru will get back to normal but I don't know when. I know how Kagome will come into Sesshomaru's life, and how many times before they really "meet", but I don't know when they will meet. My muse has total control over this story, more so than any other story I've written. I'm coming to find out that writing with nothing but a vague plan is easier than writing with a more specific line in mind. _shrugs_ Whatever works I say!! lol

Um...the passage of time may be a bit confusing for the first part of this story, (if not the rest). so here's what I'll do: at the end of each chapter, I'll do a little time summary. so here's a catch-up of the preceding chapters and this one.

Chapter 1:

Start: 500 plus years ago, 1400.

No real colonization efforts by any country (except possibly Spain).

The Sisters In Fate has been around for roughly 100 years. At this current time, Ani, or An for short, and two other sisters, Crain and Arin, make up the ruling tri-ad.

End: the year 2008, early June, late May. Exact date is unknown.

America is in full swing.

No information has been given on the Sisters In Fate. They have kept to themselves over the years and faded into myth and dreams, as did youkai in Japan.

Chapter 2:

Start: The same night as Sesshomaru's accident.

End: The following evening.

Chapter 3:

Start: The same evening as the end of chapter two.

End: Four days later, Kagome has arrived in Texas, Tor is working with Sesshomaru and Ayumi is scheming.

Chapter 4:

Start: The morning after the end of the fourth chapter.

End: That afternoon.

Still no information has been given on the Sisters In Fate.


	5. Vanquished

Chapter Dedication: All of my faithful fans! Thank you so much for putting up with me and sticking around to read this. Lol This answer your question, Diane?

I won't apologize for the year plus long delay. School… is tough, it really is. I'm in college and fighting my parents tooth and nail over where I want to transfer to and the major I'm going to choose. In then end, I'll get my way because I'll be paying for it when I get out. Simple as that.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and co. or Science Diet. Sun-L is a real company but I don't own it. I do own a four-wheeler by them, though, and my little brother has a dirt bike. But I do own Sisters in Fate, Torani and co., and the spells that I use. Plus, Mi-mi's Books. If you want to use something of mine, simply ask and explain. ;D

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Queen of the Kennel

Chapter 5:

Vanquished

_Previously in Queen of the Kennel: _

_A scream was forced from her throat as she was thrown to the ground from an explosion nearby. She landed on her butt, right beside the now very alert Sesshoumaru. There was magic in that explosion and he was not going to be caught unaware._

_Tor shook her head to clear her vision and looked up. Everything seemed to be frozen in time. Nothing moved, save herself and, somehow, Sess. There were no noises; the water had stopped in mid-flow and the air seemed deathly still. Anger flowing from every pore in her body, the young woman stood to her feet, her hands clenched by her side. Only one person was capable of such a feat._

_"Alright, you little bitch, show yourself. What the hell do you want this time?" Tor seethed._

oOoOoOo

Sardonic laughter floated through the air. If it weren't for the menacing, mocking tone it would have been beautiful. As it was, it almost made Sesshoumaru want to turn tail and run. Almost. Erasing the fear flowing through his veins, he lowered his head and growled menacingly, teeth showing all the way around.

Cane stopped laughing for a moment to stare inquisitively at the massive white dog. "Oh, what do we have here?" She ran cruel yellow eyes over the large canine. "_Silentium._" Instantly, Sesshoumaru stopped growling. He dropped to the floor, clawing at the unseen muzzle that had been placed across his mouth.

_Damn magic!_ he snarled in his mind. It wasn't bad enough that he was stuck in an extra-mini version of his true form, now they had to shut him up as well?!

Tor glared balefully at the younger woman and, with a sneer, broke the spell. "_Loquor_." The white dog sprang to his feet with a vicious snarl, ready to tear out the first spell caster's throat. "_Subsisto; adveho._" Reluctantly, Sesshoumaru stopped his attack and, against his will, returned to his owner's side. He felt Tor's hand upon his head but did not acknowledge it. Instead, he continued to keep a wary eye on the no longer amused Cane.

"Oh, so the old hag hasn't forgotten how reverse and cast spells! Well then, it looks this will be a bit more of a challenge than I thought," she sighed dramatically, inspecting her nails as if she were at a beauty shop.

"Watch what you say, you may just find yourself in my position one day," the kennel technician all but growled.

Cane scoffed at the not-so-veiled threat. "As if, _sister_. I will never be caught so unawares by my own kin. Simply for the fact that they are already dead." A wicked smirk danced across her lips. She grinned a bit, a feral, evil grin. It was something the devil himself would quake at. Once more, her flat, yellow eyes fell on the snarling dog. Hatred gleamed in them for a minute before being replaced with a dull look. "_Volo_," she snarled.

Sesshoumaru yelped as he was suddenly thrown through the air, coming to a crash landing against the far sheet metal wall. With a dull thud, he slid to the ground and lay there, motionless as death.

Tor screamed in near impotent rage as she rounded on the younger woman. "That is it! I have had it with your shit! Every year it's the same. You come to challenge me and every year you fail. I have accepted the challenges simply because I found it something to pass the time with, a distraction from the monotony of eternity. Now, though, you've gone too far. Every other sister has learned this lesson one way or another, and it looks like you need a refresher course," she seethed, clenching and unclenching her fists. Lowering her voice to a deadly whisper, she said in a calm voice that unnerved the lesser caster, "No one, absolutely _no one_ touches my animals and gets away with it. Do you understand?"

The bleach blond woman took a step back at the look on her superior's face. _Surely she wouldn't cast_ that_ spell would she?_ Her eyes darted nervously about her, looking for an escape route. Unfortunately, none presented themselves.

The green-eyed woman smiled maliciously at the absolute fear the poured from the younger woman. _So, she knows what's coming. It's too bad, it only hurts more when they do._ In a low voice, she began to chant in the proper language for spell casting or any use of magic. "_By the Eternal One's might, take this woman before me, take her from my sight, let her know her folly!_" she finished in a roar.

As the room filled with the heat of a raging inferno, Cane screamed out a final spell, hoping to wreak havoc on her opponent's mind. It was crude and poorly worded, but it worked. "If you love that dog so much, then you can see what's on his mind day and night!" Yellow light shot from her body to engulf Tor and Sess. However, the older woman ignored it. It wasn't spoken in the right language and, therefore, held less power than it might have otherwise.

When the heat had disappeared, Tor dropped to one knee, panting heavily. _It's been a long time since I cast a spell that large. It wasn't helped in the least since she threw something back at me. _She ran an assessing mental eye over herself, checking to make sure everything was fine. Other than being exhausted beyond belief, she was fine. With a relieved sigh, Tor slumped to the ground in a dead faint.

-o-o-o-o-

Sesshoumaru slowly became aware of his surroundings. The floor was cold and hard; there was something uneven at his back and the only sounds were breathing, his and one other person's. He wondered where he was and what he had gotten into this time. Had the dog catcher finally got him and put him to sleep again? No…the feeling of the drug in his system was conspicuously absent so that couldn't be it. Was he coming out of some injury? That was more likely… As the disjointed images of the past few weeks entered his mind, he gradually figured out what was going on. In an instant, he was on his feet again, head lowered, growling with his hackles raised and his tail a flag in the air.

His golden eyes cast about the room, searching for the offending woman. He didn't find her; instead, he saw Tor slumped on the ground, completely unconscious. Curious, he padded over to her prone form, snuffling about her and listening to her breathe. _Well, she's breathing normal enough and her heartbeat sounds fine. I guess she's just unconscious. Now… how to wake her up…_ He sat and mused for a moment, wondering just how to go about his new self-assigned task. Shrugging mentally, he simply did the most obvious choice. Namely, sticking his wet nose right in her face and barking.

'Wake up!' he barked. Moving closer, he began to snuffle loudly around her ear before barking again. 'Idiotic woman, I said wake up!' This continued for a minute or two before Tor finally began to come around.

-o-o-o-o-

Torani Michaels slowly became aware of her surroundings. Dimly, she thought she could hear a dog barking in the background. It was faint, though, and she dismissed it since it was an everyday occurrence. That is, until she heard a voice, deep and masculine, ring through her head. '_W__ake up!'_ it shouted. Instantly, she was awake. She sat bolt upright, narrowly missing slamming her head into the white dog's.

"Who's there?!" she called out. Her bottle green eyes cast about the quiet kennel, searching for another attacker. Shakily, she stood to her feet, using her dog as a crutch of sorts. Again, she thought she heard a voice in her head.

'_Stupid, human, I am not a crutch for you to use.'_ Looking about her warily, she almost didn't notice as Sess tried to slip out from under her.

"Stop that!" she scolded, clutching his fur and collar in an attempt to steady herself.

Sesshoumaru curled his lips at his owner. _'I am not a crutch!'_ he growled.

Tor did a double take at the dog, her attention momentarily distracted from searching for more women. "Did you just…? No. No, it can't be possible. I must've hit my head harder than I thought when I passed out. I'm starting to hear voices." The brunette shook her head in an effort to clear its thoughts. "I'm starting to go crazy…"

'"_Starting" isn't the word I'd use,'_ the voice said again. This time, there was a definite tone of hauteur about the voice.

Trying something in hopes of startling the person in her mind, she responded _'Oh? Then what word, good sir, would you use? Do enlighten me.'_ She got a reaction alright, just not the one she was expecting. The young woman was almost thrown off her feet when her massive dog practically leapt out of his skin. She yelped and stumbled back from the dog, staring in shock as he turned to growl at her.

'_How is it you are in my mind and hearing my thoughts?!'_ he growled viciously.

Tor blinked, confused for a moment, before her mind registered what he said. _'_Your_ mind?! _You _are in _my_ mind! How are _you_ hearing _my_ thoughts?!"_

The white dog snarled at the woman before him. _'Do not accuse This Sesshoumaru of desiring to hear your pathetic mind,'_ he sneered in her head.

"What the hell?!" Tor screeched, "I'm talking to my dog! In my head no less! Oh, God, I _am_ going insane…" She groaned and placed her head in her palms, willing the world to return to its normal state.

'_I thought we established the fact that you are not _going _insane;_ _you _are_ insane,'_ Sesshoumaru taunted.

"Oh shut-up, mutt-face. A cur dog like you couldn't understand a higher being's problems," the kennel technician muttered into her hands.

Sesshoumaru snarled viciously at the insult. _'This Sesshoumaru is not a cur. You should watch what you say,_ human_. Were I not as I am now, I would kill you.'_

This intrigued the young woman who turned her gaze slightly to the side and catch the white dog's eyes. "Oh? What do you mean 'were I not as I am now'?" she inquired. "I know for a fact reincarnation is a lie. So that means you couldn't have been a human before."

The former Taiyoukai growled low in his chest, miffed at the comment. _'I have never been, nor will ever be, a human. There are things beyond your understanding; I would watch were and how I step if I were you,'_ he replied, using her words from earlier.

The green-eyed woman closed her eyes, drawing in a deep breath and slowly counting to fifty all the while chanting in her head. '_I will not get into a fight with a dog. I will not get into a fight with a dog. I will not get into a fight with a dog.'_

Sesshoumaru snorted at her thoughts. _'Foolish, human.'_

That final comment snapped Tor's resolve. "That is it!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. "I have had it with your derogatory comments towards humans! What is with you?! Do all dogs hold such asinine views of humans?!" Groaning in frustration, Tor plopped to the floor, her face still buried in her hands. Muttering under her breath, she continued her rant. "For all the work I do, for all the care I give, for all the money I spend, all I get are crude comments towards me? I save your lives every day by feeding you, taking care of you, etcetera, and I get it thrown back in my face? God," she sniffled, "I would have thought you, at least, would be grateful towards me. I paid a lot of money to keep you from being put to sleep, get special food for you, mix your food up _just_ for you and you practically bite my hand for it!" Her shoulders began to shake a little as she continued to talk. All the stress of the past few days, today in particular, was beginning to take its toll.

"I let you stay out of your cage. I release spell after spell that bitch put on you! I avenged you when she threw you into the wall. I was scared that she had actually managed to kill you. And now, after all I've done for you, you make one cruel comment after another. I awake to suddenly find us able to share thoughts and, while trying to cope with it, I'm growled at, snarled at and snapped at. I've had enough shit to last more than all the lives I've lived and…" her breathing hitched as a sob worked its way out of her throat, "…and…and you just…just…you…" She couldn't finish the sentence for all the sobs that wracked her frame.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Sesshoumaru watched as his owner collapsed into tears. Suddenly, he felt rather guilty. The girl made a valid point. '_I have been ungrateful when all she has done is try to help me. She didn't know who I was. All she saw was some poor mutt that needed saving and, when she didn't have to, she helped that poor mutt—me.'_ He sighed in his head. _'Father would tan my hide for this.'_ Cringing at the thought of what his Great and Terrible Father would do to him for hurting the girl before him, he slowly padded to her side.

He stopped just inches from her, watching her as her shoulders hitched up and down, hearing her sobs wrack her abused lungs and throat. The guilt welling up inside him increasing with each shuddered breath, he took that last step forward and shoved his muzzle beneath her arm. He waited for a few minutes and, when she still wasn't responding, he gently withdrew. Taking a few steps back, he sat down and tried to decide how to go about bringing this human woman back from her depressed state. Sesshoumaru thought for a moment before an idea finally made its way into his head.

Standing, the white dog made his way over to where Tor still sat, crying to relieve all the stress she had been suffering from. He watched her for a moment before walking forward and gently pushing her backwards.

As the sensation of falling backwards hit her, Tor immediately latched onto Sesshoumaru's fur and collar. Still crying, though not as heavily as before, the young woman didn't really notice when the dog continued walking, gently lowering her to the floor before lying down and curling himself around her. Instinctively, she burrowed into the warmth at her back and sides. As her tears subsided, sleep overtook her and the last thing she remembered before darkness claimed her was a soft crooning resonating through her body.

The white dog watched as his owner slowly drifted into the realm of sleep.

-o-o-o-o-o-

She was seeing flashes of things. Green forests, blue skies, dark castles, people she didn't know. And as she saw these things, these visions, she felt emotions that weren't hers. Seeing the green forests, she felt the wind whipping past her - was she running? - and internal peace. In the blue skies, looking down on the world, she felt a sense of power. In the dark castles, she felt the sense of foreboding evil, of unmoving determination. And in the faces of the others, she felt many different things, respective to each person.

In the face of a tall man, whose silver hair was tied high up on his head, jagged stripes lining his cheek bones and golden eyes that penetrated straight through her, she felt a sense of respect for him, over the underlying sense of anger and jealousy. In the face of a shorter woman, who wore a crescent on her brow and her own straight lined stripes on her cheeks, she felt a respectful indifference. For a red clad man, who was yelling loudly and swinging a great sword every which way, with small dog ears sitting on top of his skull, she felt anger. To the humans that stood behind this man, she was indifferent. And then, when she was staring down at a young girl with the brightest smile and a cluster of flowers in her hands, she felt love. No... it wasn't as strong as love. It was the need to protect, to keep her safe. As if she were her daughter...

And then she realized - this wasn't of her own thought. These people were people she didn't know. She wasn't even in her own mind.

She managed to crack one eye open, heavy with sleep. Sesshomaru was curled around her, asleep, head resting on his paws.

_Are these... his dreams? His memories? _

It was a possibility. The spell had them connected through thought, through mind. She could see what he was dreaming, in the deepest realms of sleep, without even trying. And then she suddenly felt like she was intruding. He would never let her see these things, if he were awake... In response to her thoughts, not wanting to invade his privacy, she reached out to him.

But then her hand froze, just inches away from his body. The clearness of his thoughts that entered her mind were fading - was he waking up? - but there was a last fading image that froze her.

A tall man, clad in silken robes and strong armor, was standing before her. His silver hair flowed around him, whipping in an unseen wind, and his body was completely still. Upon his handsome, serene face, she found a crescent resting on his brow, two clean stripes lining his face. His eyes were closed, his eyelids painted with a magenta marking, but underneath she knew there lay gold irises. She could almost feel the power radiating off of him, her mind overwhelmed by the danger that was him. He stood tall, in his coma, skin porcelain white and unblemished. Pure beauty.

And then he disappeared.

_'You've awoken.'_

She snapped back to reality, looking down at the dog, whose eyes stared back up at her. Her green eyes, glinting with her shock and a trace of apprehension, locked with his golden ones. _Golden, just like the… _The young woman quickly veered from that topic, trying to distract herself. His words sunk in and she realized he was waiting for some sort of response from her.

"Yes... yes." She tried not to think of him - Sesshomaru would see if she did. Sess, her dog, she would be able to handle with a simple submission spell like before. But something had her holding back. Just who was that man she saw? Why did she feel this connection, this pull towards him?

He didn't seem to notice, _'This Sesshomaru apologizes for his actions.'_

She was shocked, whether it was from his apology or the dreams she had seen, she wasn't sure. "...Thank you, Shesshom'ru, for apologizing." Her voice was barely audible. She had a feeling she had just mangled his name, the wave of ire she just barely caught from him telling more than his seemingly relaxed body posture.

And for a moment, he just watched her. She nearly felt naked under his gaze. She shouldn't have seen what she did... It wasn't her place to see what appeared the be his memories. Who was the girl? The toad-thing? The imposing male and female? She blinked, once more changing her line of thought to keep the dog-man-creature from knowing what she was thinking.

_'You have no questions?' _he asked her, shifting his head on his paws, _'Of what you saw?' _His golden eyes kept hers locked onto him and Tor found she couldn't quite look away. There was something in his eyes, something that called to her, lured her in…begged…no, not begged. Those eyes would never beg. There was too much pride in them. Regardless, there was something that entreated her to listen, to get close, to trust him. But he was a predator, she knew. That was his nature before he struck the final blow.

She blinked, not entirely sure her hidden thought process was leading her in the right direction. If he asked about what she saw.. then that meant he let her see them? Or... Did he just know? Her gift wasn't telepathy, so she had never bothered to investigate it beyond whether or not it could adversely affect any of her spells.

"Yes, but…I won't ask them." She looked away, sitting up and rubbing her aching head. "It's not my place to know. If and when you want to share, I'll listen. For now, your secrets are your own, as are mine."

She looked up as time once more began to move. The shift was nothing as dramatic as the explosion that stopped it in the first place. Time simply began to move again, slowly at first but soon it was back to its normal speed. Dogs' barks rang through the kennel as their instincts were screaming of an unseen danger that had been close. Automatically, her hand sought out the massive white dog, running through his fur as had become habit for her.

Her green eyes shifted back to the dog when he stood and backed away from her gentle touch. Tor frowned softly at his low growl.

'_I am not a pet, woman. You will treat me with respect!' _His lips curled over his teeth as he watched her hand carefully. He wouldn't bite her if he didn't need to, but he wasn't going to petted and coddled like some mortal, domesticated dog.

The technician sighed and shook her head as she gained her feet. Males and their pride. Stretching her body, she began to clean the water and food bowls once more. A song softly floated from her lips as she rinsed a bowl before setting it on a towel.

Sesshoumaru watched her for a moment, relaxing when she made no move to try and pet him again. He laid down by the counter, once more letting his mind and memories overtake him.

oOoOoOo

Just a quick a/n: I have fallen in love with InuPapa!! lol. I mean, what fangirl in their right mind wouldn't?! I've even got an idea for a story or two with him as the central character… Oooh… I so wish he were alive. But then, the whole premise of the series probably wouldn't exist, now would it? lol

oOoOoOo

Silentium—quiet

Loquor—speak

Subsisto—stop

Adveho—come

Volo-fly (the command/verb)

Chapter 4:

Start: The morning after the end of the fourth chapter.

End: That afternoon.

Still no information has been given on the Sisters In Fate.

Chapter 5:

Start: A few seconds after the end of Chapter 4.

End: After the attack by Cane. It seems Tor and Sesshoumaru have come to an agreement of sorts.

The Sisters In Fate are alive and well, as evidenced by Cane's appearance.


	6. The Call

Chapter Dedication: TruGemini! Thank you so much for your support. And while I didn't think you meant taking over a year to write a new chapter, I still appreciate your encouragement to take my time! lol

Chapter Inspiration: Life and the nagging character in my head named Tor.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and co. or Science Diet. I do own Sisters in Fate, Torani and co., and the spells that I use, though. Plus, Mi-mi's Books.

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Queen of the Kennel

Chapter 6:

The Call

_Previously in Queen of the Kennel: _

'I am not a pet, woman. You will treat me with respect!'_ His lips curled over his teeth as he watched her hand carefully. He wouldn't bite her if he didn't need to, but he wasn't going to petted and coddled like some mortal, domesticated dog._

_The technician sighed and shook her head as she gained her feet. Males and their pride. Stretching her body, she began to clean the water and food bowls once more. A song softly floated from her lips as she rinsed a bowl before setting it on the towel. _

_Sesshoumaru watched her for a moment, relaxing when she made no move to try and pet him again. He laid down by the counter, once more letting his mind and memories overtake him._

oOoOoOo

_One month later…_

She pulled the door shut, giving another good yank to fully close the rusted hinges. Putting her shoulder against the metal, Tor pushed just enough to line the deadbolt with the hole. With a soft grunt, she managed to turn the bolt into its catch. The young woman pulled away, grumbling softly under her breath.

"Damn doors. But will Dr. Frank replace them? Noooo. 'It's too expensive' he says." Her voice turned high and mocking as she dumped out the mop bucket full of dirty water. "'We can do without them' he says. 'The door still works fine' he says. Ha! Works fine my foot!"

Sesshoumaru lifted his head to stare at this strange human. In all the lives he had lived, he could not recall ever meeting one that talked aloud and answered themselves. _'Human, what are you complaining about?'_

A muscle in her forehead twitched, involuntarily drawing her cheek closer to her right eye when his voice deadpanned in her head. "I thought we made this clear the first day this whole connection thing started. I have a name." She held out her name tag. "See? It says 'Tor.' That means that you have to call me Tor, or Miss Tor or ma'am, or miss or even mistress!" Tor ignored the soft growl she could hear as she walked by the dog to turn off the laundry room lights. "You want my attention? You call me Tor. Not 'human'."

The former lord snorted, laying his head back on his paws as he smirked in his mind, the image reaching the already irritated technician. _'It seems as though This Sesshoumaru already has your attention.' _He didn't hear the squeaky toy coming and, even if he had, he never would have been able to avoid it. The large dog yelped in surprise when a neon-green frog hit him in the back of the head. Sesshoumaru turned to glare at the woman, a soft growl rumbling in his chest.

The brunette laughed loudly at the shock written all over the dog's face. She grinned, closing the door after making a final check on the cats. "It's just you and me, pooch. I can do whatever I want and not get in trouble for it." She laughed louder at the look on his face. "Besides, you want to go home and eat more of that _yummy _Science Diet don't you?" Her green eyes danced when he stopped growling and turned away. "That's what I thought. And remember, _I'm _your ride home and it's best you listen. I don't give second chances to biters." She grinned again when his ears perked up.

Her grin turned into a smirk when a thought hit. He could hear her thoughts, right? She laughed again at how his back stiffened. She sent a mental image of a dog being put to sleep to Sesshoumaru, at least, she tried to. From how a small shudder worked its way down his spine and he growled again she guessed her little plan had worked.

"Now he was vicious. Tore right into my hand. I almost lost it." Her fingers traced the thin scars across her wrist and several fingers from the large dog. After that, she had dusted off her old spell books and began to learn new techniques that wouldn't hurt her animals, but make them less dangerous for a short time.

Sesshoumaru nearly flinched at the image of a mangled hand that had involuntarily popped into his head. He had seen worse injuries before, but it had been over five hundred years since he had seen any sort of battle besides the occasional dog fight. He stood, giving a good shake before walking serenely to the door and sitting beside it. _'Are you through in your attempts to scare This Sesshoumaru? If so, it is suggested we leave before the night gets later and your floors are messed up again.'_

Tor blinked, blinked and blinked again. "Ah hell. Today's Tuesday. The dog walker doesn't come on Tuesday! Shit. Shit shit shit! Effin' shit!" Grabbing her purse, she shooed the massive white canine out the door before turning out the light and running to the front of the vet clinic. She unlocked the front door, set the alarm and hustled outside before locking the door back.

A bark stopped her in her tracks. _'It is suggested that if you wish to keep shit confined to the floor of your home that you open the door for This Sesshoumaru.'_ He barked again when she turned around, glaring at her with all his might.

The young woman blinked and grinned a bit sheepishly. With a small laugh, she opened the door to let Sesshoumaru out. She sighed and shook her head when the alarm went off. A grumble made its way past her lips as she double checked Sess was outside before going back in to reset it. _…and arm… _Turning on her heel, she darted out the door and locked it just as the alarm chirped the final warning note.

One soft brown eyebrow arched above her eye as she looked at Sesshoumaru who sat "patiently" waiting for her to open his door. "Just remember, Sess, if there's more than one dog then all dogs ride in the bed. Be glad I bring you to work to keep you and Keiko from fighting." She opened the door and let him jump inside the cab.

'_This Sesshoumaru did not fight the old female. He simply proved his dominance.'_

She snorted as she slid into the driver's side. "And I'm a nine-lived cat." The young woman brought the old truck to life with the turn of her wrist and a little loving of the gas pedal.

He growled a bit. _'She charged this Sesshoumaru. I simply proved my greater strength and intelligence. You walked in at the wrong time is all.'_

Tor sighed a bit and shook her head. "I don't know what gets into her. She is so moody."

The white dog decided to say nothing else, simply remaining quiet for the rest of the ride. A few minutes later, Tor pulled into the parking garage, hopped out of her truck and practically ran for the elevator. Sesshoumaru blinked at her before deciding she had forgotten him again. He easily cleared the open window ledge and loped after her, slipping through the elevator doors just in time. The white dog regally sat beside his panting owner after shooting her another dirty look.

'_You are hopeless. It is obvious I shouldn't rely on you for anything,' _he snorted as the elevator rose to the third floor.

Tor shot him a dirty look as she leaned against the side of the elevator wall. "Evil…dog…" she panted.

Sesshoumaru didn't bat an eye at her declaration. If she knew half the things he had done in his first life, she probably wouldn't give him another chance. "Evil dog" was an understatement, extremely mild considering everything he had done.

A gapped toothed smile flashed before his eyes, a child's giggling laugh floating in his ears. '_There are those who can forgive_.' He didn't notice Tor's eyes widen and her head turn to look at him as the laughter rang in her ears and the smile shone behind her eyes.

'_Yes, there are.'_ She smiled a bit down at him when one ear flicked in her direction. Years ago, she wouldn't have considered herself a person who could forgive easily. Now though, after having lived the lives she has, after her most recent families showed her real love, she thought she just might be.

The elevator dinged and the moment was broken. Tor and Sess were off down the hall, skidding around the corner. Nails clicked on the cheap laminate wood flooring as rubber squeaked, searching for a grip. The young woman's hand grabbed onto the corner of the wall, just in time for Sesshoumaru to lose his grip and go careening into her legs. She groaned as her head collided with the ground, cursing aloud.

Sesshoumaru scrambled out from underneath Tor's legs, giving her a look as he did so. _'Clumsy,' _he snorted as he finished his dash down the hall. The massive white dog stood by the door, snuffling the small space between the bottom of the door and the floor. He sneezed and jerked his head back when sharp teeth tried to bite him through the small space.

'_The female is awake,'_ he deadpanned, sitting and letting Tor slowly get up and make her way down the hall.

Said woman rubbed the back of her head, mocking Sesshoumaru's words. "No duh she's awake. Probably pissed all over the floor, too. If she hasn't then I'm a monkey's uncle." She grumbled under her breath all the more, searching for her keys in the depths of her purse. The young woman rubbed the back of her head, wishing she had hit her head on the dog's body instead of the hard floor.

The former Daiyoukai smirked—in a very canine way—as he stood and backed out of the way. _'Then perhaps you belong in the zoo.'_

Tor blinked. "Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" The key slid into the lock, turning over with ease. She scowled at the white dog when she didn't receive any forthcoming answer. Stepping into the apartment, the young woman had to admit she was in _shock_. The floor was…clean! Sesshoumaru stepped up beside her, walking with his head and tail high as if he owned the place. Which, she knew, was silly because even she didn't own the little apartment.

She smiled, crouching beside the massive dog after closing the door. "What'd you do? Did you say something to her?" Sesshoumaru gave her a slanted glare that had her laughing. Before he could really answer, though, the technician was well and thoroughly tackled by her little pack.

Sesshoumaru sat down, watching the dogs practically maul Tor with licks and fervent bids for attention. He snorted. Keiko, he noticed, was not among them. Golden eyes scanned the room, looking for the old female. When he didn't immediately see her, Sesshoumaru stood and leisurely walked towards the kitchen. He didn't really _care_ where she was, he just didn't want her to attack him when he wasn't looking. She wasn't in the kitchen and further searching proved of no use in his small effort to find the old female.

"Sess! C'mere, boy. We're headed back out for a bit," Tor called. She held the door open, her little pack straining against their leashes. "If you promise to stick with me, I'll let you hold your leash."

The white dog gave his owner a dirty look. _'You will refrain from putting a leash on me.' _

Tor laughed, her eyes dancing. "I'll take that as your promise. By the way, have you seen Keiko?" She knelt down and snagged his collar and attached the leash. Her green eyes laughed along with the dogs' barking as she handed Sess his black leash.

'_I believe she escaped.' _He watched in amusement as the thought registered in her mind and her eyes widened to almost unbelievable proportions. What he didn't predict, though, was Tor attaching all the other dogs' leashes to his collar before taking off down the hall.

He growled and snapped at Duccette when she lunged forward, trying to chase Tor. 'Be still, pup.'

She whined and tucked her tail as the alpha of their little pack disciplined her. Mac growled in response to Sesshoumaru's actions, taking offense that the new male was trying to become the dominant. Sesshoumaru bared his teeth in warning. 'Tor left me in charge. Now be quiet until she returns.'

Lily whined, doing circles before stopping to stare at the open door. 'I have to go outside.'

The big white dog sighed before walking forward through the door, the pack eagerly following. He ignored the looks that other residents in the building were giving him as he strode down the hall and did his best not to be pulled over by the rest of the dogs in their eagerness to be outside. He snapped at Duccette once more when she lunged forward.

Upon reaching the elevator, he stopped for a moment as he tried to remember how Tor got the doors to open. Luckily for him, the doors dinged and open as another human exited.

Mac's tail wagged back and forth as he eagerly moved to love on this new human. He was brought up short with a yelp when Sesshoumaru grabbed his leash and jerked him into the elevator car. The little terrier growled, his hackles standing on end as he tried to stare down the oversized newcomer.

Sesshoumaru didn't spare him a glance as he waited for the elevator car to stop on the bottom floor. He lead his little pack proudly through the lobby of gawkers as he followed his nose in search of Tor. He stopped at a small patch of green for the whining Lily to relieve herself.

When she was done, he picked up the pace into a trot (a run for poor Mac) as he tracked the owner. _Once I find her I will chew these leashes through if she doesn't take them off,_ he thought Duccette jerked forward again. He tried to ask Tor where she was through their connection, but got no answer. After the third futile attempt, he gave up and stuck to using his nose.

Just a minute later, he froze as pain wracked through his body, quickly followed by grief and sadness. He couldn't understand why Tor was suddenly in pain, so he picked the pace back up to a ground-eating lope and raced in the direction her scent led.

The rest of the pack was panting by the time he came upon Tor, with a bloodied hand, crying over Keiko's prone body. He drew to a sharp halt but was tugged forward when the other dogs swarmed around the still form of the old bitch. They whined and snuffled around the body before throwing themselves on their owner. Sesshoumaru, alone, held back.

Tor wrapped her arms around Duccette and cried into the pup's neck. Someone who had seen the accident quickly got the name of the fancy car that had hit the poor dog before crossing the street to check on the obviously distressed young woman.

Sesshoumaru eyed the approaching man with caution, moving his massive body between Tor's and the stranger's. His human was foolish to grieve in the middle of the city but he would make sure she was unharmed.

The brown-haired man frowned a bit at the huge white dog. He spoke softly as he approached. "Easy, boy, I'm not going to hurt her. It's okay…" He stretched his hand out for Sesshoumaru to sniff only to yank it back as the dog leapt forward, teeth bared.

"Sess, stop it. Be nice." Sesshoumaru's ears flicked backwards towards his human before stepping aside. Tor stood, Keiko's lifeless body in her arms, and turned to face the man.

"Here, let me help you. Did she bite you? You ought to let a doctor look at that." He smiled a bit, hazel eyes trying to bring a smile on the young woman's face as he took the bloodied dog in his stronger arms. "It just so happens I'm a doctor. Where do you live? I'll walk you back."

"Magistrate Apartments," she sighed, turning and heading away. Bending down, she grabbed Sesshoumaru's leash and lead the pack and the young man back to her apartment. She handed over the leash to the young man and took Keiko back from him. The shocked young woman carried her first rescue to her truck, wrapped her in the car blanket and settled her in the back of the truck one last time. Closing up the tailgate, she turned and walked back to the elevator.

The young man was waiting for her at the elevator door, doing his best to hold the pack of dogs still. He frowned and tried to correct Lily for jumping on a stranger but was distracted when Mac hiked his leg on the corner of the stone pillar. That was Duccette jerked forward on the leash and Jezebel did circles around the human, tangling his legs in the leash.

Sesshoumaru sat there through it all, unfazed and no longer wishing to maintain order in his pack. If the male human thought he could do a better job, he would let him try. All his attention was focused on Tor as she came back up from her truck.

Their eyes met and she gave a watery half-smile. _'I'm fine. You worry too much.' _Her smile spread just a bit more at his snort before fading away as Lily jumped on another person and Duccette nearly sent the good Samaritan stranger tumbling with another jerk of her leash. _'Can you do something about them? I don't feel like dealing with them right now.'_

Sesshoumaru growled and snapped at Duccette, making her tuck her tail in submission before he set about fixing the pack's bad behavior. In just a moment's time, they were all sitting placidly on the ground in front of the man who was giving a dark look to Sess for not acting sooner.

She took the leash back, handed it to Sess and led the small group back to her room. The young man closed the door behind them and took her to her kitchen sink. He gently washed her hand free of the blood and dirt before getting a better look at it in the light.

"Well, I don't think you'll be needing any stitches. Although she did get you pretty good." He let go of her hand and washed his hands a second time before pulling out a scrap of paper from his pocket. "Look, this was the make, model and license plate of the car." He flipped the paper over as he pressed it into her hands. "The other side is my number. Just in case that hand starts to give you trouble. By the way, my name's Michael." He ducked a little bit, trying to make eye contact with the woman.

Sesshoumaru growled, twisting, turning and yanking before finally freeing himself from the collar and, consequently, the pack. He deftly maneuvered himself between his spaced-out-owner and the overly-ambitious male. It wasn't so much that he _cared _about Tor, but he just didn't want her grieving period prolonged over some stupid human.

The human shot him a dirty look before ignoring him. That wouldn't do. Sesshoumaru nipped at his leg, earning a yelp from the human who quickly fled. The massive white dog sniffed before herding his human to the couch. Grabbing her cell phone in his jaws, he let it drop into her lap.

'_Call the vet. The entire building will stink before morning and you will be in more trouble if you don't properly take care of her tonight.' _He watched as Tor nodded numbly but didn't pick up the phone. Sesshoumaru growled, nudging the phone again. _'Then call the redhead. She will help.' _

That time, Tor slowly picked up the phone, dialed her friend and waited. When the voice on the other end answered, the young woman lost it. Through sobs and choked cries, she explained what had happened. The redhead did as Sesshoumaru predicted and offered to come over right away.

Twenty minutes later, there was a knock at the door that Tor sullenly rose to answer.

The younger woman's sorrowful green eyes tugged at Rebecca's heart. "She was gone before I could get her to the sidewalk. I didn't even notice when she slipped out!"

"There there, hon, I know." She wrapped her arms around the technician and held her close. "C'mon, honey, let's get her to the vet's. I'll call Dr. Mac on our way over." The older woman led the younger out the door and to her truck.

A couple hours later, they returned and Rebecca helped her friend take care of the dogs. She scooped out everyone's food (giving a little too much but nobody complained) and made sure George had enough food and water to last until tomorrow evening. She unhooked everyone's leash and tried to put Sess' collar back on but gave up after the sixth failure and third warning growl. With a huff, she hung it on the coat rack by the door. "Dogs," she muttered under her breath.

'_Humans,' _Sesshoumaru snorted.

The two women sat down on the couch and Rebecca began to talk. "Maybe you ought to have another adoption day, sweetie. Cut down on how many dogs you have so it's easier to take care of them while you're working. They aren't self-sufficient like cats you know." She smiled and tried to make a little joke as she lovingly stroked the overweight black cat.

"Ya," Tor nodded. "That's a thought. Mom called yesterday. Said Mimi wants to see me again. It's been almost a year since we've seen each other. I don't get back over there that often."

"Well that's a good idea! Take your vacation time, go back to Midtown, do your adoption day and see your little sister and your friend. I'm sure that'll help." She frowned and sighed when Tor didn't really respond. "Look, I know she was one of your first rescues but she was getting old anyway. Remember when she went for her yearlies in April? That was a bad day. She was coughing and thin. Doctor Mac said she didn't have too much longer because of the cancer and how her lungs were starting to go. Maybe it's better this way, she didn't have to suffer for a long time."

The younger woman just nodded again, letting her head rest on her best friend's shoulder. Sesshoumaru snorted as he stretched out by the front door. _'She's not in pain anymore is she? Be happy for her. Foolish human.'_

Tor glared at her dog, sorely tempted to put _him _up for adoption. _'You don't know a thing, dimwit. Shut you're pie hole before someone else does it for you.' _

Sess yawned widely, curling his tongue over his large canines before putting his head back on his paws. _'Hn.'_

The brunette glared at her dog again before sighing and sitting up. "Thanks, Becca, I'll talk to Doctor Mac in the morning and let him know."

Rebecca stood and hugged her friend again before bustling out the door. "Be safe, hon. Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

Tor laughed at that. "Then that means I can't put the dogs up for adoption!"

The heavier woman gave a mock glare and shook her head. "Cats are different and you know it! Now then, I will leave you to your pack of dogs." With that, she closed the door behind her and left the young woman to her own devices.

Tor sighed, stood and stretched before heading to her bedroom. Dumping her blood-covered clothes in the laundry basket, she stepped into the shower and rinsed off the rest of the way. Plugging up the tub, she turned the water back to the faucet and let it fill up before gratefully sliding into the soothing warmth. She stayed in the tub until her fingers started to prune, until the water turned cool, then cold. When the first wave of shivers wracked her body she decided it was time to get out. Draining the water, she turned the hot shower back on and washed her hair, face and scrubbed the excess blood from her limbs. After thoroughly rinsing, she wrapped up in a towel and crossed the hall to plop bonelessly onto her bed.

Sesshoumaru watched her from a distance before giving up on her and taking over "his" spot on the couch.

The next day dawned far too bright and far too early for the world-weary woman. She blinked and realized that she had fallen asleep in her towel. The young technician sighed and stood, only to find her own green eyes glaring back at her from the bathroom mirror. Her hair was curly and frizzy in all the wrong ways. What could have been cute ringlets with the right conditioner were tight curls sticking out or knotted to her scalp.

"Great, now I look like a zombie." Grabbing her brush, she worked out the knots, killed the curls and pulled her hair back into a ponytail. With a huff, she brushed her teeth, put on the barest of makeup and got dressed. She fed the dogs, put the leash on Sess and was out the door a few minutes later.

Sesshoumaru, for his part, was not in the least bit concerned about his human. That is, until she almost hit the car in front of her at the stoplight. He growled as he slid from his perch on the seat. Shooting her a look, the large white dog couldn't help but comment. _'You are not the only one in the vehicle, girl. Don't throw yourself over a ledge because a mortal dog died.'_

Tor glared venomously at the dog. "Don't pretend to care because I might somehow hold the key to breaking your spell. At least Keiko _did_ care about me when she was younger, before whatever happened messed with her mind."

Sesshoumaru growled low in his chest but decided to let the matter drop since she was once more paying attention to the road.

"You know, I _have _been looking into your situation. From what you told me, it was my younger sister who zapped you. 'A sister in fate shall be found before from this spell you can be unbound.' Before from this spell you can be unbound…_Can_ be unbound. Huh. Hadn't thought of that. Crain was always a grammar freak. She wouldn't have said 'can' instead of 'may' unless she _literally meant_ that it would be impossible for the spell to be broken unless you found a sister in fate.

"And a 'sister in fate…'that can be two things. Either a woman who shares your fate—near-endless life—_or_ it could be a Sister in Fate, like me." She sighed and shook her head. "Spell casting wasn't, and still isn't, my forte. Most of my collection is at my parents' place. When we get there tomorrow we can start looking through some of the smaller books."

'_You forgot one option.'_ Sess cleaned his forepaws in a bored manner. His fine ears twitched towards her, waiting her to respond before he continued.

"Oh? What's that?" Her green eyes cast him a sideways glance as she pulled into the turn lane and waited for a clear moment to cross into the clinic's parking lot.

He shifted a bit on the seat, moving his head to get a clearer look at her face. _'The girl said Bakusaiga-'_

"Baku-what?" Tor interrupted, her face scrunched in confusion.

His golden eyes narrowed and he huffed irritably. _'My sword,'_ he deadpanned. When Tor didn't speak again, he continued. _'She said my sword would complicate things. It is possible—'_

"Possible that 'sister in fate' could be like _me! _I mean, an actual Sister in Fate _and_ a woman that shares your fate!" She grinned broadly as she pulled in and parked the old truck. Laughing, she grabbed Sess' head, kissed it, grabbed her purse and hopped out before he could respond. "Yes! I'm _finally _going to break one of that stupid girl's spells!"

Sesshoumaru growled as he was kissed but didn't carry it beyond that when Tor dropped the affection. He followed her out of the truck and into the back of the kennel, taking up his usual spot by the sink. As the day wore on, he didn't pay much attention to anything his human did. She had packed a lunch that day so he simply followed her into the side room where all the women ate their lunch and talked the hour away. He settled himself by the door on the far side of the room, well away from all the touchy-feely women.

Lunch hour ended and the day wore on until, finally, the last client and their overweight dog left, the last of the trash was thrown out and the floors were mopped. Tor stepped out of Doctor Mac's office, a tired smile on her face. Sesshoumaru sat waiting by the front door.

"Well, we have two weeks off. I'll pack up tonight and we leave in the morning. Sound good? Oh, and yes, you _will _be riding in the bed just like all the other dogs." She opened the door and led him to the truck where he jumped into the front seat as if he owned it. "Okay, if we ever fix you, you're getting your own truck."

Sesshoumaru snorted. He wouldn't drive a beat up old vehicle like this, classic or not.

Tor sighed as she parked the old truck in her parents' driveway after thirteen long hours of driving. Well, eleven hours of driving and a total of two hours for pit-stops and potty breaks. Sliding out of the truck, she walked back to the gate and locked it before opening up the tailgate of the truck. The dogs immediately jumped out and started investigating the new area.

"Good thing mom and dad keep all their dogs locked in the back half of the yard," she muttered as Sess stood calmly beside her. Glancing down at her dog, she closed up the tailgate and lugged her suitcase out of the passenger's seat, scooping George up in her other arm. "Listen, my little sister's only eight. She's probably gonna glomp ya when you go inside. Just…be nice, okay? No growling, no teeth baring, no mouthing her. Either lovin' or nothin', understand?"

Sesshoumaru snorted. _'I will not hurt a human child.'_

Tor chuckled. "I didn't think you would. I don't plan on letting the rest of the pack inside but if she gets around them, please make sure they don't hurt her."

'_Hn.' _

She grinned, her green eyes dancing. "Thanks, I appreciate it." Opening up the door to the medium sized ranch house, she put George down and scooped up the little girl that had launched herself into the air. "Ren! Hey, darlin', how've you been?" She kissed her sister's cheek, spinning her around before setting her down inside the house.

"Good! Mama made shells and cheese for supper. She even added deer sausage!" The little girl's hazel eyes sparkled from under her raven-wing hair.

"That sounds delicious! Ren, I want you to meet someone. This is one of my new dogs. His name is Sess." She took a knee and beckoned to the oddly-still dog. After a minute, he stepped forward and cautiously sniffed the girl's outstretched hand.

'_It's not the same.'_ He held still as the child giggled and patted him on the head, rubbed his ears and wrapped her small arms around his thick neck. He was thoroughly surprised when the eight year old scrambled onto his back.

"Yah yah, pony!" she giggled, bouncing up and down on the dog.

Tor gave Sesshoumaru a sideways glance but decided to question his odd comment later. When Ren climbed on top of the massive dog, she broke out into laughter.

"Renny, he's not a pony. Just a big dog." Tor grinned as she stood.

Sesshoumaru gave a long-suffering sigh but did nothing else. When Tor walked towards the living room, he awkwardly began to walk as well. He definitely felt the little kicks the girl was giving her "pony", and the small hands wrapped into the fur on his shoulders, but didn't do anything about them. If he wanted the his human's help on breaking this spell, then he would have to play along with her little sister.

"Oh my goodness! Tor, is she alright? He's not going to hurt her is he?" An older woman stood and hurried over to the pair. She reached out to take the girl from the oversized dog but stopped when the child scowled up at her.

"Leave me and Snowflake alone!" She wrapped her arms around the dog's thick neck and held on with all her eight-year-old strength. Ren glared at her mother, daring her to try and pry her from her new friend.

Tor broke out into peals of laughter, clutching her sides as her face turned red and tears pooled in the corner of her eyes. After a minute, and a rather nasty glare from Sess, she collected herself enough to speak.

"Mama, this is Sess. He's fine. I haven't had any trouble with him. He won't hurt her. He's not all that into affection but he isn't a biter. He'll just go to the other side of the room." She smiled at the long-suffering sigh the dog gave. "The rest of the pack, though, I wouldn't let her around them unless one of us or Sess is with her. He'll make sure she's okay."

The older woman gave her elder daughter a skeptical look before sighing and sitting back by her husband. "If you say so. How are you doing sweetheart? I mean, since Keiko passed. You've had that old girl for _years_."

Tor sighed, grabbed a pillow and cuddled with it while she talked. "I'm fine. Tired and rather upset with myself. I mean, she was a good sized dog. How could I have let her slip past me without noticing? I just…argh. I don't know."

Her father, a short and stout man with graying hair and his daughter's green eyes, smiled as an older golden retriever male entered. "Remember when we lost Duke? Sure he was just a puppy but everyone was like 'How could you lose a dog? How could a noisy animal just completely slip away?' Well, your grannie was distracted and he calmly followed her into the garage and got stuck there for a few days. It's still a mystery but the fact is, it happened. There's no use fretting about it." He gently rubbed the dog's graying ears.

"Ya, but Duke lived to tell the tale. Keiko didn't." Tor sighed and shook her head. "Never mind. Anyway, it's late. I'm gonna hit the hay. I'll see you guys in the morning." She grinned down at her little sister. "Say goodnight, Ren. Sess is gonna sleep with me tonight."

Ren pouted and poked out her lower lip. Her big hazel eyes widened and gave the most innocent look she could muster. "Aaw, but, Tor, I wanna sleep with Snowflake!"

Tor rolled her eyes at her sister's display. "Not tonight, Renny. I'm here for a couple of weeks. Maybe later. I want to make sure he's gonna be a good dog while he's here, though. So tonight he's going to sleep with me."

Rin glared, clinging fiercely to the big white dog. "No! _I'm_ gonna sleep with Snowflake!" Her hands curled tighter into the dog's fur as her legs wrapped around his waist.

"Renee Osmond, let go of Sess. Don't make me get Momma involved." Tor glared at her little sister, standing to tower over her and the dog. "I'm going to count to five. If you don't let go of Snowfla—_Sess_—by then, I'm going to let Momma take care of you." When her sister still refused to budge, Tor started counting. "One. Two. Three. Four. Fi—" Before the older girl could finish the final number, Renee quickly scrambled off the dog and ran to duck behind her dad's chair. Tor chuckled quietly and smiled over at her sister. "Thank you, Renny! C'mon, Sess, let's get to bed."

Sesshoumaru quietly followed. When the door closed behind them, he immediately claimed the old fuchsia recliner as his spot.

The young woman glanced at him and frowned a bit. "You're awful quiet tonight. What's eatin' you?" She turned her back to him as she pulled off her shirt and chucked it into the dirty-clothes basket. Wiggling out of her jean shorts, she opened a drawer in the oak chest-of-drawers and grabbed a pair of lounge pants. She dug through the rest of the drawers to find her favorite lime-green oversized t-shirt.

Tor crossed the room to the wall beside the recliner that was covered in a massive bookcase. Scanning the titles that were written in Latin, she finally found the one she was looking for.

"Ah, here we go. _Curses, Spells and Casting_. Mom was rather perturbed when I came home with this from the old bookstore in town. 'course, that old man died and Mimi runs it now so it's not _nearly_ so dreary. Which is a shame. I kinda liked the creepy, dusty feel. Oh well." She pulled the large book off the shelf, blew the dust off the age-worn cover and plopped down on the bed with it on her lap.

'_I thought you said you would look in a "smaller book" for answers. It will take considerably more time to look through that,' _Sesshoumaru snorted as he vacated the recliner and claimed a spot on the other side of the book.

Tor arched a brow and laughed. "Ha! This _is_ one of the smaller books. It's almost pamphlet sized compared to some of the references I have."

Sesshoumaru just blinked and decided to remain silent.

The brunette grinned. "How many magic users have you known?"

'_Few.'_

"_Exactly. _And how many of those can you shut up once they start talking about their specialty? Almost none. Most of us really love what we do and we love talking about it even more." She laughed as she grabbed a pen that was in the nightstand drawer.

"Now then, tell me exactly what you remember the spell said."

Sess huffed but closed his eyes. For a moment, all was quiet as Tor's pen was posed to write and Sesshoumaru searched through his near-perfect memory.

'"_A sister in fate shall be found, before from this spell you can be unbound. Her touch will warm, her voice will soothe until all things shall be made new. Time hath no hand in this play, but will await the day. Powers you have not, but they are not lost."'_

"Hm, well, we've already figured out the first part. You've found me so we have that done." She checked off the first refrain of the spell. "'Her touch will warm, her voice will soothe until all things shall be made new.' Don't really understand that. Crain wasn't one for innuendos in her spells, so I seriously doubt it has anything to do with sex. 'Touch will warm, voice will soothe.' Huh." Her green eyes scanned the paper a few times as she tried to think.

'_If you cannot figure out that line, proceed to the next and return later.'_ Sesshoumaru commented as he tried to read her writing. Despite living in this country for nearly 500 years, he still wasn't fluent with the written English language. He had picked up what he knew of it through other animals and the humans he had encountered.

"Good point, Mr. Sess," Tor chuckled as she moved on. "Gaw, you're such a teacher."

Sesshoumaru glared at her but it fell flat when she wasn't paying attention to him.

"'Time hath no hand is this play, but will await the day.' Well that's an obvious one. Ageless basically. Um, where was I? Oh, right. 'Powers you have not, but they are not lost.' Sounds easy enough. She just sealed your powers. So, if you're returned to normal then you get them back. And knowing Crain, it'll be in a rather _explosive_ manner. So we ought to be prepared for that. So, the only line we don't really know is the soothing touch one."

Both lapsed into silence as each tried to think of what the phrase might mean. The quiet drew out well into the night and was only broken when Tor sighed. "I gotta get to bed. I'm about to fall asleep and drool all over this poor book." She stretched backwards, wincing a bit when her back popped. Shaking her head to clear her mind a bit, she closed the book, let it plop on the floor and slid under the covers before turning off the lamp.

Sesshoumaru stiffly slid off the bed, stretched out his back legs and reclaimed his recliner seat.

"Mm, night, Sess." Tor grabbed her body pillow, stuffed it between her knees, buried her head underneath the regular pillow, and was out like a light in minutes.

Sesshoumaru however, was quite awake. He lay there, watching Tor as she slept, thinking about the girl he had met earlier. Up until this point, his whole focus had been on survival. He hadn't had the spare energy or time to reminisce and think about his past. But now, meeting Tor's younger sister brought everything rushing to the surface.

'_Rin is most likely dead. Ah Un might be out there still somewhere. Jaken is most likely dead. Rin…' _He remembered "testing" the Tenseiga on her. Remembered catching his breath when he felt her heartbeat for the first time in his arm. Remembered giving up on destroying Naraku just to ensure her safety. Sparing the slayer-boy even though he had been the one to try and hurt Rin. _'Rin.'_ He missed her. That was at the bottom of it all.

With a final sigh, Sesshoumaru closed his eyes and let himself drift into his dreams. In his dreams, he was still a powerful lord. Rin was still alive and making flower-chains for Jaken and Ah Un. Jaken was still around to be used as a football when he needed a stress-relief. In his dreams, everything was perfect.

Tor groaned, cracking an eye open as sunlight streamed through. The knocking on the door started up again. "Alright alright! Geeze, so impatient. Come in. I'm up."

Her mother stuck her head in the door and smiled. "Your friend Ayumi is on the line. She wanted your number but I said you were visiting so she wanted to talk to you. Here, I've got the cordless here." The older woman handed the phone to the half-awake girl in bed and left the room.

Tor grumbled and sighed as she answered. "'llo?"

"_Tor!" _Said girl flinched and jerked the phone away from her ear when the younger girl squealed on the other side of the line. _'Oh lord have mercy she is loud!'_

Sesshoumaru smirked mildly as he slid out of the recliner and stretched.

"Hi, Mimi," Tor mumbled as she sat up and threw her Tweedy Bird pillow at the big white dog. "Yeah, I'm in town. I got in last night around eleven."

"_So what are your plans for the day?" _

"Well, actually, I was gonna—_Hey! _Don't you dare! Sess, you asshole!" Tor dropped the phone on the bed and lunged for the dog that had decided to tear into the pillow she had chunked at him. She grabbed the old, yellow pillow and tugged. "Drop it! _Sess! _I'm gonna neuter your ass right now!"

"_Tor? Tor? Are you there? What's wrong?" _Ayumi frowned on the other end of the line.

Sesshoumaru smirked. If she was going to throw stuff at him, he was going to chew on it. She'd learn eventually. He growled as she tugged at the pillow. Standing, he tugged backwards and gloated as she fell flat on her face.

"_I won that pillow when I was eight! Now give it back!_" Tor fairly screamed as she lunged again.

Sesshoumaru dodged easily, leaping on top of her bed and posing for another spring. He smirked as Tor's frazzled face appeared over the end of the bed, her hair all over the place and her green eyes flashing.

"I keel you!" The young woman sprang and managed to tackle the dog when he slipped in the duvet. Wrenching her pillow away from him, she tossed her hair out of her face and answered the concerned Ayumi in a bit of a breathless voice. "Sorry, the dog decided to try and kill my pillow. Anyway, as I was _saying_, I was gonna give you a call and see if I could hold an adoption day at your shop."

Ayumi laughed. _"That's funny. I was calling you to see if you had any dogs up for adoption. I've got an old high school friend that needs a dog. Her cat died a few months ago and she needs someone who will love her."_

"Um, what kind of energy is she? What kind of time does she have to devote to a dog?" Tor planted her foot on Sess' backend and shoved, smirking victoriously when he slid off the bed in an undignified heap. She yelped and jerked her foot back when he spun and snapped at it.

"_I'm not really sure. You'd have to ask her. She'll be at the shop today if you want to drop by."_ Ayumi twirled the phone cord around her finger. She just couldn't give up corded phones, no matter what the future offered.

"Mkay, sounds like a plan. I'll drop by after while, okay? 'Round ten."

Ayumi giggled. _"So you'll be by in an hour?"_

Tor rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I'll be there around ten_ish. _Happy?" She sat up and stretched before kicking out of the covers she had snuggled back under.

"_Sure, Tor, I'll see you in a bit."_

"See ya, Mimi." Tor hung up the phone and glared at the dog that was glaring at her. "You know, you could have just _told _me not to throw anything at you." She petted her pillow. "You didn't have to try and kill my poor pillow."

'_After knowing this Sesshoumaru for a month, it should be obvious that I do not tolerate attacks against my person,' _he snorted as he once more claimed his recliner while Tor crossed the hall to use the restroom.

When she returned a few minutes later, she closed the door but threw open the curtains on her window and opened it wide. "Need to go outside? There's the door!" she pointed to the window.

Sess gave her a scathing look.

"Miss Priss," Tor muttered, closing the window and drawing the curtain back. "It was worth a try." The young woman stepped into her closet and changed into a t-shirt that proudly supported the local high school baseball team and a pair of jeans. With another yawn, she let herself flop face-down on top of her bed. "Gah, I don' wanna be up yet…"

Before she was entirely aware of what was going on, the door to her room had been thrown open and eighty pounds of eight-year-old was on the bed, on top of her.

"Oof," she grunted as the girl straddled her back. "Whaddya want, Renny?"

Ren just giggled and bounced on her sister's back. "Giddyup, horsie!" Bouncing again when the older girl didn't respond, she "spurred" her mount in the sides. "C'mon!"

"Neigh…Oof. Uhg, you broke me, Ren." Tor chuckled into the duvet. She shook her head and nickered like a horse before ending it in a strangled sound that had even Sess' ears turning towards her.

"Noo! You can't be broke!" Ren pouted as she bounced again. "C'mon, giddyup!"

"Uuhg, no, I'm broke! Go ride Sess. I bet he's _starved _for attention," the older sister mumbled around a face full of hair.

Sess' ears went back at that. _'You have no sympathy for the damned.'_

Tor laughed aloud at that. _'We are both damned, remember? So in our case it's called empathy and no, no I don't!'_

Ren squealed happily and scrambled off the bed. In the blink of an eye, she was sitting astride the giant dog, bouncing up and down on his back. "C'mon, Snowflake, giddyup!"

"Yah, _Snowflake,_ giddyup!" Tor sat up on the bed, a smirk on her face as she goaded the dog. The young woman grabbed a hairbrush and pulled back her hair, tying it off in a messy bun of a ponytail. Grabbing her polka-dotted bag of makeup, she put on a little makeup as Sesshoumaru reluctantly stood and walked around the room with the little girl attached to his back.

'_You owe me.'_

'_Um, I'm doing my best to break that little spell you have on you, aren't I? Let's not get into that game.'_ She dusted a little blush on her cheeks before digging for the mascara.

'_I am parading your sister around on my back, protecting her from the rest of your pack of mongrels and acting like a common dog because you asked.' _He paused at the foot of her bed, hoping against hope that the girl would get bored and get off. No such luck. She giggled and gigged him in the sides again.

"C'mon, Snowflake!"

'_Okay, okay, I'll do something to get you away from her while we stay. I have a colt I need to start on the trails. You can come with me then.' _"Alright, Renny, I have to take Sess and the other dogs to Mimi's. Go ahead and get off." She slid off the bed and grabbed her purse and a handful of slip-leashes from a dresser drawer.

"Aww, is Mimi gonna adopt Snowflake?" Ren's big hazel eyes watered up as she obeyed her sister. She wrapped her little arms around the dog's thick neck and held on protectively. "But I wanna keep Snowflake!"

Tor smiled and ruffled the little girl's hair. "Don't worry, hun, Sess isn't up for adoption. I'm gonna keep him. But I have to take him with me today so he can get used to going other places." She leaned down and kissed her sister's cheek.

Ren smiled, shrieking in childish glee before hugging Sess and bolting from anymore affection. Her little feet smacked against the hardwood floor as she made a break for her own room and shut the door with a bang.

The older sister chuckled and cut off the lights to her room. "C'mon, Sess, let's find the rest of my pack." Stepping out of the house, she put her thumb and middle finger in her mouth and gave a sharp whistle.

A minute later, Lily, Mac, Duccette and Jezebel rounded the corner, tails wagging and tongues hanging out. Tor opened the tailgate of the truck and all four piled in. Sess easily leaped in after them, taking up his usual position at the front of the bed, near the cab. With a little sigh, he lay down and let his head rest on the wall of the bed.

Mac canted his head to the side as Tor slipped a leash over his head and tied it in a quick-release to the rope that was ran the length of the bed. 'You are tall. You're the tallest dog I have ever met.'

Sess snorted. 'You have not met a wolf, have you?'

Mac's stub of a tail kept wagging as he wrapped his leash around Lily's legs. 'Nope, but I hear they're big.'

'Most of them are as big or bigger than me.'

The Jack Russell's tail stopped wagging as he stared in awe. 'Really? Wow. I don't want to meet one.'

Sess wrapped his head around the side of the cab and flicked an ear forward, inadvertently revealing a scar that was normally hidden by his thick hair. 'No, you wouldn't.'

Tor trundled out of the yard and onto the long driveway. Twenty minutes later, she pulled into a gas station in town. Sliding her debit card, she stuck the fuel pump in her truck and leaned against the side as the tank began to fill. She sighed and let her head rest on the cab before wrinkling her nose at the little Prius across from her with California plates.

"I swear, if we have another person move to this little town and try to liberalize it, I'm going to have to start using bumper stickers."

Sesshoumaru snorted and continued to drowse in the heat.

:.:QotK:.:

Kagome grumbled to herself as she stepped out of the gas station. The attendant there hadn't been any help at all. She sighed. She just _knew_ she shouldn't have gone on that errand for Ayumi! She got to the bank fine, but took a wrong turn somewhere between there and the bookstore and somehow ended up at this old gas station to ask for directions. But, of course the woman wouldn't know where the bookstore was and Kagome had no idea what street it was on.

"Brilliant, Kagome, you're lost in a town smaller than Tokyo and don't even know where you're going and you left your cell at Ayumi's. Absolutely brilliant." The young woman dug a ponytail holder out of her pocket and pulled back her hair. It may not be as hot as California, but it certainly was more humid! She was about to get into her car and start driving and hope to find the shop—or some familiar landmark—when she figured she'd ask the young woman who was finishing gassing up her huge truck.

"Um, excuse me?" she started, trying to gain the girl's attention. All at once, she realized that there were five dogs in the bed and she now had four of them barking and wagging their tails at her.

"Shut your mouths, yappers!" the girl scolded, giving an impressive glare. When they quieted enough for her to hear, she turned and smiled at Kagome. "Can I help you?"

"Hopefully," the former priestess smiled in response. "I'm looking for Ayumi's bookstore. Do you know where it is?"

"I sure do. Just gimme a minute and you can follow me there. Oi! Shut _up!_" she scolded the dogs again when the smallest one barked and lunged at the end of his leash, little paws flailing in the air.

"Oh no, you don't have to do that. Directions will do just fine. I don't want to make you late for anything." Kagome tucked a stray bang behind her ear.

Sess' ears swiveled toward the soft spoken young woman and his nose twitched as he took in her scent. _'She smells vaguely familiar.'_

Tor turned and arched a brow at her dog before smiling at Kagome. "Oh, it's not a problem. I'm headed there anyway. 'sides, it's easier for you to follow me than for me to give you directions. I'm not sure you'd be able to follow them," she chuckled.

Kagome felt vaguely insulted but decided not to comment. Instead, she chose to accept the offer. "Thanks, I really appreciate it."

"Not a problem." The brown-haired girl put the pump back in its cradle, screwed in the gas cap and headed for the driver's side. "Just follow the barking dogs!" Starting the old truck up, she buckled in and pulled out at the same time.

Kagome quickly slid into her car and hurriedly pulled out after the woman. She had to speed a little, which made her _very _nervous, to keep up with the truck full of dogs. She gasped as the little Jack Russell put his front paws on the tailgate and looked like he was going to jump out. Her heart was in her throat until the big white dog reached over and scruffed the smaller like it was a puppy and pulled it back into the truck. She sighed and was greatly relieved when none of the other dogs tried such a stunt.

A few minutes and several turns later, they pulled into Ayumi's little parking lot. Tor was out of her truck in seconds, scolding the smallest member of her pack. She sighed and shook her head, thanking Sess with a smile in his direction. Opening the toolbox in the bed of her truck, she dug out the normal leashes and slipped them over each dog's head except Sess'.

After parking her little Prius next to the truck, Kagome slid out and smiled at the other girl. "Thanks again, I really appreciate it. Do you need any help with the dogs?"

"Nope, thanks, though. I've got 'em." She opened the tailgate and let the dogs jump down on their own, leashes firmly in hand. Sesshoumaru stood, stretched and leisurely—almost gracefully, Kagome thought—leapt from the truck. He shook once before turning to stare at her with piercing gold eyes. The young woman was struck with an almost déjà-vu feeling as she locked eyes with the white dog.

Tor's voice broke the moment. "Sess, c'mon! I don't want to run Mimi's AC bill up just because you decided to start a staring contest with a girl."

Kagome could've sworn she heard the dog snort before he turned and slowly walked inside. "Uh, don't you need a leash on him?" she asked as she followed Tor into the small building.

"Who, Sess? Nah, he isn't going anywhere. He knows who dishes out the Science Diet. Mimi!" Tor smiled brightly as her friend appeared around a corner. She passed off the handful of leashes to Kagome before wrapping her friend in a hug. "Oh it's been a while!"

Ayumi laughed as she hugged Tor back. "It's been much too long! And I see you brought quite a few dogs with you today. Oh, Tor, this is my old high school classmate Kagome. Kagome, this is the girl I've been telling you about."

Tor chuckled and smiled as she shook Kagome's hand. "We've met, actually. Poor girl here was lost at the gas station and asked me if I knew where your shop was. Since I was comin' here anyway, I decided just to lead her."

Kagome smiled, a little blush flagging her cheeks. "So you're the famous Tor. I should have known by all the dogs in your truck. Thank you again for leading me here."

Ayumi smiled brightly as her friends met each other. "It's a good thing Tor was on her way here! You would never have been able to follow her directions." She leaned forward and whispered in a conspiratorial tone. "She's horrible at giving them!"

"Hey!" Tor cried indignantly as she took back the dogs' leashes. "I'm not _that _bad. I've been getting better y'know." She sat down and pushed Mac off her lap. A little sigh escaped her mouth as Sess claimed a reading chair next to her. "Sorry about him; he's _almost_ human."

'_Not even close, woman.' _

Her green eyes sent him a pointed glare and he just snorted in return. "He's not going to mess anything up. The most he'll do is give it a good coating of fur."

The store's owner smiled and reached out to pet the big white dog. "Oh you're just gorgeous! You look like a puppy I used to have!"

"Uh, Mimi, I wouldn't try that. He's not aggressive, but he isn't much for being loved on," Tor warned. When Ayumi frowned a bit but withdrew her hand, she waved to the little pack of four at her feet. "This bunch, however, are not at all adverse to some sweet lovin'. Are y'all?" she cooed with a smile at the dogs.

The four canines barked and wagged their tales, each eager to meet the new people.

Both Japanese girls squealed in delight, dropping to their knees and picking a dog to love only to be swarmed by one who wasn't getting enough attention. Mac planted his paws on Kagome's chest, furiously licking her chin as Jezebel shoved her head underneath the other girl's arm.

Duccette nearly tackled Ayumi as she snuffled the girl's face before giving a few licks. Lily sniffed the girl all over before setting to work on licking off the makeup on the human's face. The young woman laughed as she braced herself on her hands in a desperate attempt to stay upright.

Tor laughed and gave a little whistle, calling the dogs off the women. "So, Kagome, what kind of place do you live in?" She stroked her dogs, getting them to calm down.

"Well, actually I'm living in California. But I live in a little two-bedroom apartment. Right now I'm rooming with Ayumi. My apartment isn't _big_ but it isn't little." Kagome twirled her hair around a finger, a bit nervous. She stole a glance every now and then at the seemingly sleeping white dog.

"Okay, what kind of lifestyle are you? Active, super-active, average, not-so-active?" She needed to know how this woman lived so she could match her up with the right kind of dog. If she gave her a dog like Mac and Kagome wasn't very active, it wouldn't be very fair to the dog at all. On the other hand, if she _was _very active and gave her a more laid-back dog like Sess, then it wouldn't be very fair to Kagome.

"I'm moderately active, I guess you could say. I go jogging three or four times a week in the evenings. I make a couple laps around my apartment complex." She wriggled her fingers at the Golden Retriever, more than delighted when the dog happily slipped her head into her hands.

Tor watched the exchange and smiled. "That's Jezebel. I found her covered in muck and filth in an alley behind a bar. She is a lover through and through. How about the three of us go for a little walk? Just make the block and see how you two work together." She stood and slipped the remaining three dogs' leashes underneath the chair that Sess was occupying.

"Um, okay. Although I'm not really dressed for exercise." Kagome smiled a bit sheepishly. She smoothed a hand down her jeans and tucked one flip-flop clad foot behind the other. The purple t-shirt she wore just a bit snug for an active outing. "I guess we'll be back in a few minutes, okay, Ayumi?"

The mutual friend nodded and smiled. "Sure thing. I'm sure we'll be fine. It's the slowest part of summer and the slowest part of the day." She turned her attention back to Duccette and began to love on the female.

Tor smiled and turned to Sess who had raised his head. "Stay put, Lug. I have to have an anchor holding the other dogs in place."

'_This Sesshoumaru will do as he pleases.'_ He snorted and looked like he was going to jump down.

His owner scowled. "You do and I'll make sure Ren gets plenty of playtime with _Snowflake_ tonight."

Sess put his head back down on the chair.

Tor chuckled and nodded towards the door. "C'mon, he'll be fine." She kept Jezebel on a short but relaxed leash at her side. The golden retriever female was happy to be outside but calmed down after a quick correction when she tried to bolt. "Jezebel loves to walk or go for a jog. The best way to make sure she remembers that you're the boss is to make sure she walks beside or behind you. Never let her walk in front."

"Why is that? I mean, I don't see what the big deal about letting her walk wherever she wants." Kagome shrugged a bit.

The other woman smiled and chuckled. "That's what I thought when I 'trained' my first dogs. Have you ever seen a pack of wolves in the wild?"

_If only you knew,_ the dark-haired girl thought. "Actually, I have. Several times."

Tor nodded. "And who ran at the front of the pack?"

It was on the tip of Kagome's tongue to say "Kouga" but she stopped herself in the nick of time. "The leader of the pack did. I still don't get it, though."

"I'm getting there. Dogs are descended from wolves, right? So it stands to reason that their pack dynamics would work very similarly if not the same." Tor corrected Jezebel when she tried to chase a squirrel. "You said the leader runs at the front of the pack. That's right. Did you ever see any of the lesser wolves run ahead of him?"

Kagome thought back, racking her memory as she did her best to cooperate. "No, I don't think I ever did."

"In a real dog pack, the leader, or alpha, runs at the head of the pack. They pick where the pack goes and how fast they get there. Tell me, Kagome, if you had a pack—even if it was just of one dog and yourself—who would you trust as the pack leader? The dog? Or yourself?" Tor brushed her bangs from her face and watched the young woman think.

"Myself. A dog doesn't understand everything we have in society now. It wouldn't understand a cross walk sign, a stop light or an intersection. I would have to lead it through everything." Kagome smiled. She felt pretty important at that point. It came as a bit of a surprise, though, when she felt Jezebel's leash being pushed into her hand.

"I think you're ready to walk her. Remember," Tor instructed as they kept walking, "_you're_ the pack leader. You walk ahead of her. Don't let her do something you don't want her to do."

Kagome nodded as she continued to walk, the female obediently trotting along beside her. When Jezebel stopped to sniff at something and Kagome slowed down to oblige her, Tor gave a gentle correction to them both.

"Give her one good tug on the leash, make a correction noise and keep walking. She sniffs on her time, not your time. And the walk is _your time._ You have to correct quickly, though. Her attention span is much shorter than yours and if you don't do it soon, she won't know why she's being corrected." Tor smiled. "I know it's a lot to take in. But you can do it."

Kagome frowned and tried to think of a good noise she could use for correction. "Pss!" She gave one sharp tug and continued walking. Jezebel was a bit unsure of the noise but she understood the tone and tug on the leash well enough. She stopped sniffing at the grass and started walking again.

Tor laughed and smiled. "And I have another convert! Yus! Now then, do _you_ like Jezebel? It doesn't matter if she's the right energy for you if you don't like her." She stopped at the intersection and turned around, headed back to Ayumi's shop.

The Japanese girl smiled down at the very content looking Golden Retriever at her side. "I love her. She's gorgeous, sweet and a good dog. I'm sure we'll get along real well."

Tor smiled, happy to have found a good home for one of her favorite dogs. "That's great. I'll give you my number when we get back so you can give me a call at anytime." The walk continued in peaceful, aimless chatter between the two young women.

*.:.*QotK*.:.*

A/N: Hey, y'all, I'm back with a 24 page chapter for you! lol I know it's been almost a year (and I had said earlier that I hoped to get this out before summer's end…) but I'm so glad that you made it all the way through! I know I defied a few expectations here, considering there is an AU story that's fairly similar to this, but I'm happy that I did! I'm not much of one to conform to norms.

Now I probably shouldn't say this, but I will promise two more chapters before year's end! I promise you a Christmas present chapter and a New Year's present chapter. Yus. I can't promise length (since this one took about four months of off/on writing and turned out to be 24 pages) but I promise them to have good basis. And who knows? I might get more inspirations and give you more chapters (bribes are accepted)!

This story isn't going to be nearly as long as I originally thought it was going to be, which is a good thing! My muse is a fickle, fickle woman, though, so all bets are off. Although I can say we are roughly a quarter of the way through the story so that means there will be twenty-something chapters (ish, mind you!). I know how Sesshoumaru is going to shift back (sorta…) but I'm not entirely sure when, possibly in the New Year's chapter.

After that, the good sesskag content y'all are craving will begin! And, fyi, I don't know who will woo who…lol. For all I've been informed, Kagome might take that step since she _is_ the future-literate one. So, thank y'all for sticking with me and hello to all the new readers! Drop me a review and (if you're signed in) I'll reply!

Chapter 1:

Start: 500 plus years ago, 1400.

No real colonization efforts by any country.

The Sisters In Fate has been around for roughly 100 years. At this current time, Ani, or An for short, and two other sisters, Crain and Arin, make up the ruling tri-ad.

End: the year 2008, early June, late May. Exact date is unknown.

America is in full swing.

No information has been given on the Sisters In Fate. They have kept to themselves over the years and faded into myth and dreams, as did youkai in Japan.

Chapter 2:

Start: The same night as Sesshomaru's accident.

End: The following evening.

Chapter 3:

Start: The same evening as the end of chapter two.

End: Four days later, Kagome has arrived in Texas, Tor is working with Sesshomaru and Ayumi is scheming.

Chapter 4:

Start: Two weeks after the last chapter.

End: That afternoon.

Still no information has been given on the Sisters In Fate.

Chapter 5:

Start: Where the last chapter left off.

End: That afternoon (a couple hours later).

Chapter 6:

Start: One month after the last chapter. We'll say that Kagome left for Ayumi's two weeks before the end of May. That means July is here (in the story, lol)!

End: A few days later.


	7. You Can Be Unbound

Chapter Dedication: All my lovely fans!

Chapter Inspiration: Life and the nagging character in my head named Tor.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and co. or Science Diet. I do own Sisters in Fate, Torani and co., and the spells that I use, though. Plus, Mi-mi's Books.

"Speech"

Actions

'Beast/Animal Speech'

_'Mind speech'_

_Thoughts_

Queen of the Kennel

Chapter 7

You Can Be Unbound

_Previously in Queen of the Kennel:_

_Tor laughed and smiled. "And I have another convert! Yus! Now then, do you like Jezebel? It doesn't matter if she's the right energy for you if you don't like her." She stopped at the intersection and turned around, headed back to Ayumi's shop._

_The Japanese girl smiled down at the very content looking Golden Retriever at her side. "I love her. She's gorgeous, sweet and a good dog. I'm sure we'll get along real well."_

_Tor smiled, happy to have found a good home for one of her favorite dogs. "That's great. I'll give you my number when we get back so you can give me a call at anytime." The walk continued in peaceful, aimless chatter between the two young women._

oOoOoOo

The dark bay colt danced in his crossties, impatient and frustrated with being tied. One long leg came up, stuck out in the air for a half-second before coming down with a resounding _clang!_ against the concrete floor. His dark eyes rolled backwards as his ears flattened against his skull. He shook his head and snorted, the black-brown tail swishing in agitation. He swung his backend towards the post that held one of the ties. A black-socked foot struck out against the post, sending small chips of wood flying as the iron-clad hoof left an indent pole.

"Easy!" Tor chided as she twirled the lead rope at the colt's right side. Obediently, the young horse moved back to the left and away from the dented pole. "Now then, what's your issue? Hm?" She ran her hand along his side as she walked behind him, letting him know she was there. Double checking the tightness of the halter and the length of the cross-ties, she shook her head. "You're such a drama queen. There's nothing wrong with your tack." The young woman looked back to her sister with a smile. "I'll be right back. Stay put and don't move." The colt whinnied loudly and snorted when other horses answered back. Tor chuckled and walked away.

Ren giggled at the horse. Her arm was wrapped around the large white dog's neck as he sat beside the hay bale she had claimed as a seat. A mixture of white hair, hay and dirt coated her black jeans and brow t-shirt. Mud-splattered boots and a faded _I __ QH_ ball cap finished off her barn ensemble. The little girl rolled her eyes at the colt's antics.

"Silly horse!" she chided in a laughing voice as her feet swung back and forth. Little bits of hay floated to the ground whenever the girl's legs collided with the bale behind them. "He's so silly, Snowflake! He acts like he doesn't like being tied up."

_He probably doesn't_, Sesshomaru thought as the girl's small fingers worked their way through the rough that surrounded his throat and gently scratched at his skin. The gold eyes that had slid closed at the lovin' snapped open when Ren slid off the bale and bounced over to the young horse. She giggled even as the three-year old shied away from her loud steps. Sess' ears flattened when the horse started pawing again. When Ren reached out to pet the animal's soft nose and the horse's ears went back, Sesshomaru was as the horse reached out to bite the little girl. His strong jaws snapped closed over the horse's muzzle, pulling the colt's head down as far as the cross-ties would allow. The young horse and girl screams echoed through the barn.

Tor bolted out of the tack room at the end of the hall. Her long legs were put to good use in ground-eating strides. She quickly took in the situation: the colt was screaming and doing a half-buck every other second, Sess had his mouth firmly clamped around the horse's muzzle and Ren was crying. Although the big sister in her was demanding to stop the little girl's crying, her logical side knew it would be best to stop the crazed horse first.

'_Sess, let go!'_ Sesshomaru immediately dropped his hold on the crazed animal. The horse reared up as high as his cross-ties would allow, metal-shod hooves flailing in the air. Tor ran her hand along the animal's writhing body. Her voice was calm and low as she gently pulled the horse back to the ground. She rubbed his ears and eyes avoiding his muzzle just yet. Once he was calm, she inspected the velvety nose of the colt.

"Easy. Good boy. It's okay. That's my man," she cooed as she worked. Thankfully, Sess had measured his bite-strength so he didn't break the skin. Once she was satisfied the colt was fine, she turned to take care of her still-crying sister. Tor scooped the little girl into her arms, holding her close as she calmed her down. "It's okay, hun. It's alright. He isn't gonna hurt you." She stroked the child's hair, kissed her temple and gently shushed her. "Now, tell me what happened," she calmly instructed when Ren had stopped crying.

"I just wanted to pet his nose!" she wailed, pointing at the still skittish colt. The animal danced in place, snorting and tossing his head at the high-pitched wail that echoed in the barn.

Tor sighed. Somehow, she knew that was at the root of everything. Ren and her love for "pretty animals." Eyeing her little sister with a frown, she asked the question that let every kid knew that they're in trouble. "What have I told you about petting Dozer?"

Ren squirmed n her older sister's arms, suddenly uncomfortable with being the center of attention. The tone in her older sister's voice told her she was in for trouble. She mumbled something unintelligible under her breath as her eyes shifted to the ground.

"What was that? I didn't understand what you said." Tor wasn't going to let up. She would rather Ren learn the _easy_ way rather than the hard way about listening to instructions when it came to animals.

The little girl frowned petulantly but raised her head to lock eyes with her sister. "Not to pet him…"

"Exactly, so why _did _you pet him?"

"'Cause…" she hedged, not wanting to really talk about what could easily get her into serious trouble with both her sister and her parents.

"'Cause why?" The older sister arched a mouse-brown eyebrow at the little girl.

"'Cause he didn't look happy about being tied up! I wanted to pet him 'cause I wanted to make him happy."

_Ah, little girl logic. _Tor sighed. "Ren, honey, horses aren't like dogs. You can't pet them to make them 'happy.' Although horses _do _like affection, you can't just waltz right up to them and start petting them if they're already scared. _Especially_ if I have told you not to pet them. Dozer is a stud-colt. What does that mean?"

Ren fidgeted as she thought. "He's gonna be a daddy?"

The young woman smirked and chuckled a bit. "Close enough. It also means that he is meaner than other horses. He doesn't always think about things like Feathers does." Feathers, Ren's sixteen year old mare, was as smart as a whip but also as much of a dead-head as a horse could get. "He's a boy. Boy's aren't always smart, remember?"

The little girl nodded. Tor smiled at her only sister and set her down on the ground. "Now then. I want you to go back up to the house. I was gonna pull Feathers out and let you ride her, but not now."

Ren whined, sticking out her lower lip in a pout. "But, _Tor_!" she cried, sniffling a bit for added affect.

The brunette scowled, her expression immovable as she looked at the child. "No buts. I want you to go back up to the house and tell Mom and Dad what you did. Sess is gonna make sure you get up there safe and sound. Aren't ya, big boy?"

Sess stood and stretched before walking up next to the little girl. With a soft sigh of reluctance, he gently nudged the little girl around and escorted her out of the barn. Tor watched as they rounded the corner out of her sight before turning back to her future stallion. She chuckled at the way he was now completely focused on the bay mare in the pasture across from his current spot.

Patting the side of the horse's neck, she picked up a curry comb and began to groom him. "Don't get your hopes set on her, big fella. Feathers is only interested in your father. She'd kick the snot outta you if you so much as sniffed her." It was true, too. While Feathers was a great mare with people—especially young children like Ren—she wasn't all that receptive to new stallions, much to Tor's dismay.

In the now-quiet atmosphere of the barn, with a lazy breeze flowing through the alley way, Tor searched the tack room for one of her harsher bits. She wasn't cruel with her horses, but she wasn't stupid enough to think you could put a Happy Bit in a stud's mouth and have him listen. More force had to be used with them than with geldings or mares. Most of the time, anyway. Finding the one she wanted, she attached it to Dozer's bridle and slipped it over her shoulder.

When Sess returned from his errand forty-five minutes later, Tor was in the warm-up arena working out the kinks in her horse. The massive white dog watched as she put the thousand-plus-pound animal through his paces. He backed, went forward, did figure eights, rough side-passes, walked, trotted and loped. Not long after he arrived, Tor stopped in the middle of the arena and just sat there. Sesshomaru wondered just what she was doing. He understood all the exercises she had used on the horse, but now they were just standing there, doing nothing.

Tor looked up and grinned at Sess' curious look. _'I'm still working him. This time, I'm teaching him that it's perfectly fine to just stand still and be quiet for a few minutes. I warmed him up so when we go for a trail ride, he'll be much less likely to pull something.' _

Sess just looked away and lay down in the dirt. Sure enough, a few minutes later, Tor patted the stud-colt's neck and urged him forward. Dozer sighed and licked and chewed—a sign of submission in horses. The young woman stayed on as she urged him sideways to the gate, opened it, walked the horse through and urged him back to close it. The colt swished his tail and tossed his head but obeyed. Once the gate was locked, Tor smiled down at Sess. _'Think you can keep up with a run?'_

Sesshomaru snorted. He walked placidly beside the horse as they worked their way out of the barn area and towards the trails. Tor laughed and dug her heels into the colt's side. "_G'yap!_" she yelled for the sake of it. A smile spread across her face as the young stud squealed and leapt forward. Iron-shod hooves pounded across the packed dirt while Tor leaned forward in the saddle like a jockey.

_Let's see now, that would have been six lives ago, I believe. Back then it was easier to pretend to be a guy than it is nowadays. _Her green eyes glanced down, spying Sess as he ran flat out alongside the horse. Tor could tell his breathing wasn't labored as some of her other dogs' had been on runs like this. A little while later, she sat up and slowed Dozer down to a steady lope. The ground-eating stride from the tall horse brought them to the campsite she desired after a few spots of walking and trotting (with perfect posting on Tor's part) to break the all-consuming speed both she and the horse loved.

They stopped at the base of a moderate incline before Tor angled Dozer's head towards the rocky slope and urged him forward with a kiss and a gig. "C'mon, big boy. Let's get to the top then I'll let you rest." Sess was already scrambling up the slope ahead of them. The young woman half-wondered if he was picking out the best footing for the horse.

The big white dog growled a bit. _'No.'_

Tor snickered. Yup. She knew it. Dozer more or less followed in Sess' footsteps, only slipping a couple times on the gravelly incline. His chest heaved by the time he reached the top and his rider was all too willing to slide off his back and let him rest. She walked him around the flat grassland for a little while before letting him take a few drinks from the stream. The routine continued for almost fifteen minutes until the colt was sufficiently cooled off. The young woman untacked the horse and pulled out the bag of oats she had stuck into one of the saddle bags. Pouring some into a feed bag, she slipped it over his muzzle and attached it to the halter.

She staked out the poles for the tent, stretched the fabric out and tied off the ropes. Crawling inside, she rolled out the sleeping bag and put her saddle at the head of it. She sighed and plopped down, more than ready to just relax before making supper. "Hungry, Sess? I'll scoop you out some food."

A broad white head made its way through the open tent-flap. _'No. I will hunt. I'll return.'_ With that, he was gone. Tor wondered if she'd hear the scream of a dying rabbit tonight.

"Oh well. Might as well get the fire going." She stretched once she was outside of the tent and began to hunt for twigs and larger branches to fuel the fire. Twenty minutes later, a good fire heated the air around the small campsite. Tor scowled a bit when Dozer stopped grazing—she had removed the empty feedbag after the fire had gotten started—and lifted his head. He whickered a bit, ears twitching as his brown eyes watched the surrounding trees intently. "Easy boy. It's just Sess out there somewhere."

She squatted by the campfire, setting up the small grill to cook her own supper. When her burger was cooked to perfection, she slathered the bun in mustard and ketchup, layered on the cheese and patty before biting into it. _Sooo good_, she moaned quietly. The young woman jerked upright when a blood-curdling scream ripped through the air before all was silent. She gulped down the bite of burger, suddenly losing her appetite. _Oh god._ No matter how many lives she lived, she didn't think she'd ever be able to get over the sound of a dying rabbit. With a grumble, she packed the burger away in a plastic bag to eat later or give to Sess.

Tor exited the tent, her face twisting into a scowl when she noticed Sess, panting hard with blood around his muzzle, pacing around her fire and keeping his eyes trained on the trees in front of them. He growled low in his chest, his gold eyes flashing. He didn't pay any attention when Dozer screamed.

The young woman took off for the colt, only to growl in her own frustration as the lead-chain snapped and the horse took off in the opposite direction. "Stupid animal! I _knew _I shouldn't have used the chain lead. I should've just stuck with the regular lead. It's not like there's a band of wild horses out here." She puffed a breath out that blew at her bangs before turning her attention back to the copse of trees Sesshomaru still had his attention fixated on.

She took a knee beside the large dog, threading her hands through his fur and latching onto him. In a way, the massive canine was a security blanket. One she wasn't about to give up.

"Sesshomaru, what's out there?" Tor asked quietly. The air became thick and oppressive, making it hard to breathe. That wasn't kosher with the spellcaster. Before she lost too much rational thought, a spell tumbled off her lips and suddenly, the air was breathable again. However, the spell left her feeling a little more drained than she had been before. _'Great. It's been way too long since I've had any practice. I can't use too much magic or I'll collapse.'_

The dog snorted. _'I do not know. Don't use your magic. Whatever it is takes your strength when you do.' _His white ears flicked forwards. He felt Tor's hands clench in the deep fur of his throat in an attempt to still their shaking.

"Whatever it is has magick. Not measly everyday magic like 'Sabrina the Teenage Witch' magic. But serious heavy duty magick with a 'k.' It's nearly as strong as my own. Damn, I wouldn't want to face them in a challenge for Head Sister." She shuddered at the thought of what a fight like that would entail. It wouldn't be easy, or pretty. Most likely it would go to the death, pulling out the black arts. It would be a trial of endurance.

_'It would not be allowed,'_he drawled in her head.

"Oh yeah?" Tor shot back, a scowl on her face. "Why is that?"  
_  
__'Because it is male.'__  
_  
"Shut up."

Any reply he may have was cut off when a horned…_beast_ emerged from the trees. It was tall, muscular in a grotesque way and completely naked. Tor winced at the sight that met her eyes. "Yup. It's definitely male. Ew." Atop the creature's head sat two massive, curling ram's horns. Its eyes were just voids of black. Tor rose to her feet, her body a bit shaky from the energy that was stolen from her. "Okay, let's do this, bitch. Wanna fight? I'll fight." A series of words that Sesshomaru couldn't even begin to understand rolled off her lips as flames coalesced in her hands.

He wanted to _bite_ her, to knock her down, to sink his teeth into some part of her body and shake her until she listened to him! He had specifically told her _not_ to use her magic! Hadn't he said that it would only suck her energy faster? Stupid girl. As the flames left her hands, headed for the monster, he was right behind them. His ears flicked back to his human when he heard her moan and stumble a bit. However, his rush wasn't going to be stopped. He leapt into the air and latched onto the beast's throat, trying to use his weight to drag it to the ground.

The beast bellowed its rage and pain at being burned then having this small thing biting him. One thick arm struck out, sending Sesshomaru to the ground with a yelp. Its soulless eyes followed the cry. Slowly, its body turned and it lumbered toward the downed canine.

"Sesshomaru!" Tor cried, struggling to her feet again. Not only was her energy being drained by the beast, but she didn't have good control on her magic reserves. It had been far too long since she at least meditated, figuratively sweeping the cobwebs from the corners of the room and dusting the sidewalks. She panted, running through different spells in her mind, trying to find something that would work. She was forced to settle on an elemental one—her least favorite even when she was at her best—when the creature reared back to pound her dog into the ground. The words flew from her mouth, hasty and with a word or two swapped around. Dark clouds gathered over head, flashing with lightning and rumbling with thunder.

Suddenly, a massive bolt came straight down, hitting the creature on the head. The beast jerked back and roared in pain as a sizzling sound filled the air. The smell of burning flesh made her choke as her breathing spell ran out and she collapsed, unconscious.

Sesshomaru snarled as the spell suddenly ended and the creature lumbered forward again. The white dog was _pissed_ that he couldn't do much of anything. _Pissed_ that he was useless because of this stupid curse. He danced around the creature, always keeping himself between Tor and the beast. He stopped in front of her, easily within reach of her hand. Both ears flicked back and his head turned in surprise when the young woman reached out and began to pet him.

Tor frowned through hazy vision at the blood-red eyes of her dog. "Easy boy. It's okay. We'll be okay. Just chill. Don't go all berzerko. Easy. Easy. You're fine. Fine."

The dog began to come down from his fighting high, coming back to himself and realizing that, for a brief moment, he had been in touch with his beast. No, he had been _lost_ to his beast. He was mindless, only good for fighting, barely good for protecting. Something stirred in his chest and he caught his breath as their eyes locked. Perhaps Tor wasn't so bad. She was at least the second example in his life of how humans weren't pathetic, weak, worthless, expendable, and so on. He considered all the advances they had made in the past 500 years. More than what his own kind had made in the thousands they had been around. Maybe, maybe they deserved a kind of respect of their own. Maybe they deserved the chance to prove themselves before he dismissed them. Maybe…

Suddenly, his breath was literally stolen from him. His body rippled before exploding in size. His head spun as his muscles protested at the sudden expansion. He stumbled, legs splayed out wide to keep his footing as his senses returned. The first thing he noticed was that the air was certainly thinner than it was on the ground but, at the same time, infinitely easier to breathe. He blinked before growling in appreciation. This was _right. _This was how he was supposed to be. He gathered his yuki—something he hadn't done in almost 500 years—and compressed it into a tight ball within his body, effectively shrinking him back down to his humanoid form. He did a quick once over and found everything to be in order. Bakusaiga and Tenseiga rode at his hip, firmly stashed in the _obi_ that held his armor at his hips. He ran his hand through the massive pelt on his shoulder and smirked. He was _perfect_ again.

"Now, let's finish this," he said in Japanese. The beast's black eyes widened, suddenly frightened about what he was up against. Despite all the magick he possessed, he knew next to nothing of how to actually use it—except to steal energy from others who used it. The returned daiyoukai called forth his whip, slicing off the beast's head with a flick of his wrist. Before the thing hit the ground, its arms were gone and its torso was separated from its legs.

He turned back to his human, who had once more passed out. The air was quickly clearing, though, so he figured she would come around soon enough. Sesshomaru scooped her into her arms, taking care that nothing accidentally rolled into the nearby fire. He carried her to her tent and ducked inside, placing her on the sleeping bag before stepping out. His finely tuned nose scented the air, looking for the runaway colt. When he couldn't find him close enough, he decided to ask Tor about it when she woke up.

*.:.*QotK*.:.*

A/N: HA! I actually kept my promise! *does a mad little dance* Merry CHRISTmas y'all! I can't believe I actually finished this on time! WOOHOO! Lol Hope y'all enjoy! Don't forget to review!And obviously, I like exclamation points! XD I know it's short, but I got it in on time AND with quality! Yus. :3 Tell me what you think, please. :)

Chapter 1:

Start: 500 plus years ago, ca. 1400.

No real colonization efforts by any country.

The Sisters In Fate has been around for roughly 100 years. At this current time, Ani, or An for short, and two other sisters, Crain and Arin, make up the ruling triad.

End: the year 2008, early June, late May. Exact date is unknown.

America is in full swing.

No information has been given on the Sisters In Fate. They have kept to themselves over the years and faded into myth and dreams, as did youkai in Japan.

Chapter 2:

Start: The same night as Sesshomaru's accident.

End: The following evening.

Chapter 3:

Start: The same evening as the end of chapter two.

End: Four days later, Kagome has arrived in Texas, Tor is working with Sesshomaru and Ayumi is scheming.

Chapter 4:

Start: Two weeks after the last chapter.

End: That afternoon.

Still no information has been given on the Sisters In Fate.

Chapter 5:

Start: Where the last chapter left off.

End: That afternoon (a couple hours later).

Chapter 6:

Start: One month after the last chapter. We'll say that Kagome left for Ayumi's two weeks before the end of May. That means July is here (in the story, lol)!

End: A few days later.

Chapter 7:

Start: The following afternoon.

End: A few hours later.


	8. Changeling

Chapter Dedication: There's been plenty of fans worried that this won't turn out to be a SessKag story because of the interactions between Tor and Sesshomaru. Let me assure you by dedicating this chapter to y'all! This WILL be a SessKag story. Promise. ;)

Chapter Inspiration: Life and the nagging character in my head named Tor.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and co. or Science Diet. I do own Sisters in Fate, Torani and co., and the spells that I use, though. Plus, Mi-mi's Books.

"Speech"

Actions

'Beast/Animal Speech'

_'Mind speech'___

_Thoughts_

Queen of the Kennel

Chapter 8

Changeling

_Previously in Queen of the Kennel:_

_He turned back to his human, who had once more passed out. The air was quickly clearing, though, so he figured she would come around soon enough. Sesshomaru scooped her into his arms, taking care that nothing accidentally rolled into the nearby fire. He carried her to her tent and ducked inside, placing her on the sleeping bag before stepping out. His finely tuned nose scented the air, looking for the runaway colt. When he couldn't find him close enough, he decided to ask Tor about it when she woke up. _

oOoOoOo

Tor groaned and curled into a fetal position, tucking her head into her hands. She had a killer headache and felt absolutely exhausted. To top it all off, she had the strangest dreams. She dreamed that Sess had transformed into a gargantuan version of his normal self. Then, he had become human. Well, something like it, anyway. When he spoke, she just melted even though she didn't understand a word he said. That voice…it sent shivers down her spine. _No! Bad Tor! Sess was your _dog_ until a month ago! No hitting on dogs! Ick!_ Thoroughly convinced that she was _not_ going to start something with her dog, she slowly uncurled to take a look at the world outside her tent.

Crawling across her sleeping bag, she threw open the tent flap and peeked outside. The fire was normal, the air was fine and, best of all, there was no monster body lying on the ground. She breathed a sigh of relief, even though Sess wasn't around. She just figured he was still hunting.

"Tor."

Said human screamed and dove for the huge branch in the wood pile meant for keeping the fire alive during the night. Grabbing it, she sprang to her feet, ready to club the living daylights out of whoever was intruding on her camping night. She blinked once, twice and a third time at the ethereal figure standing before her. He was tall, taller than her dad who stood at six-foot-even. His skin was pale, but not sickly. Just plain white, like a ginger, except his hair—which Tor immediately became both envious and twitter pated with—was white. He had the weirdest tattoos she'd ever seen, two purple stripes on each cheek and a blue crescent moon on his forehead. The eyes, though, were what clicked the figure before her with an image in her head.

"Sesshomaru?"

"Hn."

"Oh good lord, it _is _you!" She dropped the branch, plopping to her butt on the packed earth. "This day is just getting weirder and weirder. So, I guess when I was trying to calm you down I was the voice that would soothe? But, what about making all things new?"

Sesshomaru stood beside her, looking down at her for a moment with piercing gold eyes only to turn his vision to a large patch of dead grass. _'Not all humans are the same.'_

She blinked. What? That didn't make sense. "Oh, okay then." Tor rubbed her temples, trying to take it all in. "So, you're Sesshomaru. The actual Sesshomaru?"

He arched a brow down at her, giving her a look that plainly asked if she was stupid. _'There is no other named such.' _His eyes glanced back to the patch of barren earth where the beast's body had been before his acid had dissolved all evidence of its life. _'Are you going to remain the night?'_

The young woman snorted. "Duh. Whatever that thing was is gone, isn't it? Plus, you're Mister Super-Power-Dude so if anything else happens you can take care of it, right?" She looked around and scowled. "Now if only I could find that stupid horse." Putting her fingers to her mouth, she gave off a series of sharp whistles that had the daiyoukai next to her debating his new view on humans.

'_What was the point of that?'_ His hands ached to rub his ringing ears. If he stayed with this woman, he was going to have to educate her on how much more sensitive his hearing was now. Sesshomaru gave one sharp shake of his head to clear out the ringing before Tor answered.

"I was calling Dozer. And why don't you actually speak? Ya know, like a normal person?" She stood and dusted off her clothes before heading back into her tent. She dug through the saddlebags in search of the treat she typically gave the colt when he returned at her call.

'_I am not normal.' _He flicked his hair over his shoulder as the sound of pounding hooves reached his ears. _'Your horse is returning.'_

"Really? I can't hear anything." Finding the bag of apple treats, she scooted out of the tent, searching the area with her eyes. "And of course you're not normal. The whole spell-transform-thing made sure of that. But I meant can't you actually move your mouth and talk? I thought I heard you say something in another language when you killed the beasty."

'_It was my native tongue. What you would call Japanese today.' _

The wheels churned in Tor's lazy mind for a moment before everything clicked. "Oooh… you can _understand _English but you can't _speak_ English. Well, that's not a biggie. It can be taken care of a few different ways, depending on how fast you want to learn to speak it."

His golden eyes slid over the young woman who stood to his shoulder, wondering just what she meant. _'No more spells.'_

"Aaw…but that's one of my favorite ones! It's a simple little spell that only works once and has no side effects!" She had actually hoped to use that one and kill two birds with one stone—teaching her, erm, _male_ to speak English and getting the 'I want to kiss this guy senseless' bug out of her system. His eyes narrowed and chilled, sending a little shiver down her spine. _Okay! Bug officially dead!_

'_No spells.' _He watched as Tor scurried to meet the stud that was running at top-speed towards them, smirking just a bit. Ah, yes, it was definitely good to be back.

Tor gulped slightly as she grabbed Dozer's broken chain, fed him the treat and led him back towards Sesshomaru. She pushed the six inches of chain into the daiyoukai's hand and dove back into the tent.

"Hold him for a minute, please. I need to see if I packed an extra rope." She dug through the saddle bags as the stud and dog eyed each other with intense dislike. Although the shape had changed, the horse still recognized the scent of the dog that bit him. And although the comparative height had changed, the dog still recognized the horse that had tried to bite his latest charge. "Ahhah! Found it." The young woman scooted out backwards, sturdy hemp rope in hand.

Stepping up to the fidgeting colt, she shushed him and tied a bowline knot on the underside of his halter before leading him back to the stake she had originally driven into the ground for him. Grabbing the broken lead, she slipped the rope through the bottom-most link and tied it off with a quick-release knot.

"And just for security measures…" She pulled out a shorter length of rope from her back pocket, quickly hobbling the colt so if he did somehow break away, he wouldn't be able to run. The young woman walked back towards the tall male who still stood by the crackling fire. She sized him up for a minute before sighing. "Are you hungry? I've still got most of a burger. I only had one bite before you killed the rabbit." She wrinkled her nose a bit. "I could've done without the scream."

The white dog's smirk returned. _'Apologies.'_

Tor eyed him skeptically. "Somehow, I doubt that. Anyway, do you want it? I'm going to crash now. I'm still pretty tired from the whole 'fight the nude monster' thing."

'_No.' _He sat down outside her tent, keeping all his senses tuned on the world around him. He would make sure nothing else crept up on them. He watched as the last of the sun faded from the sky, leaving it grey and colorless in the twilight evening. The clouds overhead gathered, growing thicker and heavier with each passing minute. When the first rumble of thunder shook the land, Tor stuck her head outside the tent.

"You can come inside if you want. I forgot earlier in all the excitement but it's supposed to rain tonight. Nothing bad, just a good, heavy rain." She held the tent flap open and showed the extra space inside the large canvas shelter.

'_And your horse?'_

"It's a hot summer night. He'll be fine in the rain. I'll bring him under the trees, though, for extra coverage. As long as there's no lightning he's not in real danger under the trees." She crawled out of the tent, hair a mess and clothes all wrinkled. Her boots were sitting right outside the tent and she pulled them on half-way before walking out to the horse. She had removed from the stake from the ground and was leading the horse back to the tent when the skies let loose. With a squealing laugh, she threw herself onto the horse's back and urged him forward. He snorted but loped forward, sliding to a stop at the start of the trees. She dismounted, rubbed and kissed between his eyes before tying a quick-release to a sturdy branch. Coming back out, she gave the soaked male a look. "I _said_ you can go in. I'm not going to bite you."

'_It is improper.' _

Tor blinked a couple times. "Hells bells! You were a _dog _up until a couple hours ago. Dogs don't care about manners and propriety! They _lick_ their cooches and gonads in broad daylight in public! And we're out here in the middle of nowhere. My parents' place is the closest place around here and it's two or three hours away by horse!" She huffed and threw her hands in the air in frustration. "And what year was it when Crain zapped you? Somewhere around the 1400's? Times have seriously changed since then. It is no longer 'improper.' Only some people nowadays consider it improper. The large majority of the human population doesn't care. It's even sold on television. Trust me, it won't be a big deal for you to sit inside my tent when I'm in it." She walked past him and held the tent flap open. "Here's the door!"

The daiyoukai glared at her before ducking inside the tent. Once she was inside, he settled himself between her and the entrance. Just because he was inside didn't mean that he would slack off on his guard duties. He leaned against the sturdy central pole, one leg propped up with an arm draped over the knee. His keen eyes shone in the deepening shadows and his ears stayed focused on the sounds outside the tent. The night passed uneventfully except for the rain, which let up and finished by early dawn. Years of habit of waking up just before dawn had him moving to wake his human, only to remember that they were not on a march, just a campout for the sake of a campout. He sat back down and let her sleep until she decided to wake up.

A few hours later, Tor moaned a bit as she rolled over in her sleeping bag. With the rain, a small cold front had moved in, dropping the temperature to a cool low-seventy-something. She curled into a ball, determined not to wake up until she absolutely had to. With a grumbled sigh, she sat up and stared with bleary eyes at the wide-awake youkai sitting at the front of the tent.

"Didn't you sleep at all?"

'_No.'_

She gave him a deadly look. How was it that he didn't get a wink of sleep and looked absolutely perfect while she had a good—she looked at her watch—eight and a half hours and looked like a train wreck?

"Lord help the woman who you decide to marry," she muttered under her breath.

He arched one perfectly manicured eyebrow at her. _'What do you mean?'_

Tor smirked. "She's going to have to be like _the_ perfect woman. She can't be jealous of you and all you're prettiness. She can't have issues about waking up looking like a train wreck and you're perfect. And I would _hope_ that she wouldn't have issues about your dearest friend in the whole wide world dropping by every few centuries or so?" She grinned and batted her eyelashes.

'_Hn.' _He refocused his gaze outside.

"Aaw…so you do acknowledge that I am your best friend?" She chuckled as she passed him on her way out. She stretched once she was outside the tent, sighing in relief after her back popped a few times. She checked on her damp colt and was satisfied that he wasn't soaked. The trees had kept a lot of the rain off him. She looked back as Sesshomaru came out of the tent. She wondered at his clothes, armor and the swords at his side. Her curiosity demanding she touch the things, she sidled up beside him for a closer look.

One hand reached out to touch the black and white hilt. _I love the black geometric design through that white…It gives it a nice little pop. _She jumped a bit when a clawed hand wrapped around her wrist, stopping her only inches from the sword. She grinned sheepishly up at the cat-slit golden eyes.

'_That would be unwise.' _He glared at her, releasing her hand after a minute. Humans and their incessant need to touch things.

Tor retracted her hand. "Okay, no touching the swords. What about the oversized boa?" She moved to run her hands through the fur. It looked absolutely heavenly. She sighed when he grabbed her hand again. "Okay, that's a no on that one, too." With a despairing sigh, the young woman ducked back inside the tent and grabbed the saddle pad. She threw it on the horse's back before leading him out from underneath the trees. She threaded the rope over his nose then tied if off again to make a rough pair of reins. Throwing herself onto his back, she cursed herself and gigged the colt's sides. "I am an idiot to ride a stud-colt without a saddle. Oh well, the ground is soft from the rain if I fall!" One hand wrapped into his mane to help her hold on as she worked to warm him up.

Once he was sufficiently loose, she was pleasantly surprised to find the campsite packed and everything ready to go. She grinned at the youkai who was looking for all the world like he had nothing to do with the camp being ready to go. She should have expected it, but was still shocked to see that he had erased almost all traces of them being there. The only thing left was the large patch of dead grass where the body of the beast had been. She threw the saddle on Dozer's back and cinched him up as she worked.

"Thanks, Sess. I appreciate you packing up the camp. Although I could have done it once Dozer was warm and dry." She slipped the bridle over his head and fastened the throatlatch as the colt played with the bit. The curb chain and chin strap were next. She threaded the saddlebags through the strings on the D-rings, tied down the sleeping bag and surprisingly small tent, patted the horse's neck roughly and swung back into the saddle. The young woman looked back at the male standing next to her. "You can swing up behind me. He'll take doubles."

Sesshomaru eyed the horse then the landscape ahead of him. Riding the horse might be easier, but he wanted to run. He hadn't ran on two legs in over 500 years. Now was his chance and he wasn't going to pass it up. _'No. I will run.'_

Tor blinked. "You sure? It's a couple hours away even for a horse." She turned Dozer in circles when he got antsy and tried to move without her command. When he finally settled down, she turned back to look at the youkai still waiting on her.

'_Yes. It has been too long since I have run.'_ There was no talking him out of it. Frankly, if he wanted to, he could easily beat her to the house by an hour or more. But he wanted to actually _run. _Not just speed. He wanted to feel the pull in his muscles, the rushing of the blood in his veins, the wind hitting his face and blowing back his hair. He looked away from her, waiting on her to start going.

The spellcaster rolled her eyes at his silent cue. With a yell and a good gig to the colt's sides, they were off like greased lightning. Tor laughed as Dozer screamed and reared. She leaned forward as he went up, staying in balance with him until he came down and began to race all-out across the grassy plains. She glanced to her left, surprised to find Sesshomaru easily keeping pace with her. With a chuckle, she urged her horse faster, knowing just how to work him to get all he had to give. After a few minutes, she slowed him down to a lope, then his rough trot and finally to a steady walk.

"Easy, good boy." She rubbed his neck as they walked, letting the horse catch his breath and cool off a bit. All three beings were startled when Tor's cell phone went off. She flashed Sesshomaru a thankful smile when he grabbed the reins before she dug out her cell phone.

"Hello? Oh, hey, mom. … No, I'm on my way back right now. …She did? Well, tell her I'll call her back when I get in. … Fine," she sighed with a shake of her head, "I'll call her right now. Bye. … Love you, too. Bye." She hung up and rolled her eyes before dialing Ayumi's number.

"_Hello?"_ the young woman's voice answered on the other end.

"Hey, Yu-yu. What's up? Mom said you called?" Tor urged her horse forward at a walk. She could ride and talk at the same time…most of the time.

"_Yes! I just wanted to let you know that Jezebel and Lily absolutely love my apartment! They sniffed everything, Lily found the laundry room…"_ She talked on and on about how the dogs were doing and Tor mimicked her to Sesshomaru who was walking alongside her. She made her hand into a mouth and opened and closed it several times, grinning all the while.

'_She's a big talker when she gets onto a subject she likes,' _she explained.

'_Hn.'_ His golden eyes shifted to watch ahead of them.

"_So, how about lunch tomorrow?"_ Ayumi chirped as she loved on Lily.

"Uhh…Actually I'm busy. I've got work here at the barn to take care of and a friend of mine came into town so we'll be hanging out for a few days." She did her best to get out of the invitation. The young woman didn't think that Sesshomaru was quite ready for an outing as a non-dog.

"_Well bring your friend! Is it a guy?" _She giggled and Tor sighed. _"It is! I can tell by that sigh! I _have _to meet him! What's he like? What's his name?"_

"Easy! We're just friends, Mi-mi. I mean it. Nothing more. In fact, we're almost like siblings." The young woman ignored the look she got from the daiyoukai on that one.

'_I tried to kill my brother many times.'_ He chuckled darkly when Tor twitched. _'I almost succeeded every time.'_

The hassled young woman sighed. "Listen, Mi-mi, I'll give you a call when I'm free again, okay? Bye, hun." She hung up after a goodbye from her friend. "We're going to have to teach you English real quick. I hate being stuck at home."

'_Then you do not have chores like you told her?'_

"Oh I do. But they can always be put off for later. I enjoy hanging out with her. She's a breath of fresh air from all the drama of my lives." The rest of the ride was quiet as both people thought of what the future held for them. Tor wasn't optimistic about her lives. She never was and even these past few that were filled with happiness didn't make her think positive.

Sesshomaru, however, was optimistic in his own way. His curse was broken and he was free to regain his life. However, he had a distinct feeling that he was no longer Lord of the West and hadn't been for some time. He would check into it before another day passed. What lingered on his mind most, though, was how to repay Tor. He owed her his life and his honor demanded proper repayment.

'_What was your spell?' _he asked as they arrived at the barn. He watched as she swung off the horse and led him towards his stall.

"Hm? Oh," she sighed and shook her head. "Honestly, I don't remember. Sad, right? My memory was never perfect and I was actually asleep when she cast the spell. I woke up to _'until death do you part.' _Thing is, though, I've actually been married several times." She looked away, her green eyes closed and cold. "But, that's not what breaks the spell. I shouldn't have gotten pissed and killed her. Now, I will most likely never know how to break the spell." She shrugged as if she didn't care while she untacked Dozer and fed him. "But hey! Now I know someone with practically eternal life so I won't be _totally_ alone." She grinned up at him but he knew it was forced.

'_You will never be alone, should you so wish.' _The smile that appeared on her face this time was smaller but genuine.

"Thanks, Sess. C'mon inside, I'll get you setup with learning to speak, read and write English." Once they were inside, she stuck her head around the corner and smiled at her parents who were sitting in front of the TV with a sleeping Ren beside them. "Hey, um, this is my friend Seth." She gestured to Sesshomaru who had stepped up beside her. "I told him it would be okay if he stayed with us while he's in town." Her parents eyed his pale skin, white hair, strange markings and even stranger clothes. "Uh, he was in a play…" She grinned broadly.

Her parents looked at each other and frowned. "I guess it will be okay. We don't have an extra room, though."

"That's fine. He'll sleep on an air mattress in my room." At her parents' aghast looks, she hastily added, "And the door will be open at all times when both of us are in the room! We're just friends, promise. Please?"

The two older adults just sighed. If they really trusted their daughter, they'd have to show it. "I suppose. As long as the door remains open when both of y'all are in the room."

"Thanks!" She gave each adult a kiss and Sesshomaru nodded his head towards them. "And Seth says thanks. He just…is getting over a bad cold and his voice is all scratchy so he doesn't like to talk." Tor quickly retreated from the room, Sesshomaru on her heels, to avoid any further questions. Crossing to her closet, she searched through it to find her old grammar books.

'_Okay, these books will teach you the basics of English. They teach you the different types of words, what they mean and how to use them.' _She gave him an Oxford Unabridged Dictionary. _'This has all the recognized words in the English language, what kind of word they are and what they mean. For all the words that aren't in here, I can let you look on the internet and find their meaning. Some of them, though, you just have to learn through context. After you get the basics down, I'll help you get started on learning more. Any questions?'_

Sesshomaru looked at the reading material she handed him then arched a brow at her. _'I cannot read your language.'_

Tor blinked and cursed under her breath. _'Okay, then, plan B. I'll show you how to work a computer and get the Pimsleur Japanese off iTunes. When you finish the first one, go ahead and buy the second one if I'm not around. I have plenty of money. We'll also need to get you clothes once you can speak good enough. And a car.' _

The daiyoukai gave one nod. _'Show me the program.'_

The long-lived human sat down at her computer and quickly pulled up iTunes. She browsed through the store, found the first edition of Pimsleur for Japanese and purchased it. _'There, just click play and it'll walk you through it all. This will help you speaking until the other program gets in.' _She pulled up the Rosetta Stone order page and purchased the Japanese one. _'That should be in by the end of the week. In the meantime, just keep practicing with this. You'll be ahead in speech.' _

She gave up her seat to Sesshomaru, showing him how to start the program before heading to the shower. When she returned forty-five minutes later, she was surprised to hear Sesshomaru almost flawlessly speaking a few basic words in English. He had purchased the second version and was currently working his way through it. She smiled and plopped back onto her bed with a happy little sigh. The young woman was half-asleep when she heard something she hadn't expected to hear just yet.

"Hello, Tor. How are you this afternoon?"

Tor blinked and sat straight up in bed, gaping at the youkai across from her. "Wow, you're a fast learning."

"Yes, I am." He smirked a bit at her shell-shocked look before returning to the computer program. He spoke the phrases and words confidently and clearly.

"You know…" She trailed off when she saw the open door. With a muttered spell under her breath, she flicked a little ball of magic at the entryway, satisfied to see it glow a soft white before subsiding to normal. "You know you'll need a job, too. If you hope to support yourself off my help, that is. I mean, I don't mind helping you, but seeing as you were like super-important before all this happened, I'd just figured you'd be super independent, too."

"Hn." He hadn't considered that. _'You are correct. What are you suggesting I do?'_

"Well, I have a company called 'Perusers.' It's for the magically-inclined sub-population. Technically, I'm CEO, head, president, whatever you want to call it. However, I have to have all this paperwork done each time I die and have to basically rebuild my company and it's getting really frustrating. You know about ruling a land, and, once you can read, you can quickly learn business laws. I was thinking you could take over, Mister Eternal-Man-Sir." She grinned. "It'd be a huge favor to me to have someone I could trust looking after it. And my personal assets, as well. Those are a _huge_ headache every time I die." All the paperwork, secrecy, convincing the banks she was her own daughter…it would be easier to have someone else looking after it all.

Sesshomaru thought on it for a minute. He supposed running a business wouldn't be too much different from running a land, perhaps even less stressing. It would give him a semblance of his old power back and something to occupy his near-everlasting time. As for looking after Tor's personal assets, it would be a start towards repaying her for breaking the curse on him and practically giving him her company.

He nodded his head in acceptance. _'I agree. I will take care of your business and assets once I have learned how to do so.'_

She smiled broadly and snuggled down underneath the covers. "Thanks. Now get to crack-a-lackin' on those programs."

The week passed with a rapid pace. Sesshomaru exceeded all of Tor's expectations when it came to learning English. Heck, he learned it faster than she did! He spoke it fluently, wrote with perfection and style, and mastered business law in two days.

"I guess that's what comes of having to sleep only every blue moon," she muttered under her breath one afternoon. "Did you have any success in finding out what happened to your old lands?"

"Yes. My retainer cared for them until he was assassinated six years after I left. My half-brother abdicated all responsibility and the lands fell to my mother's hands. She controlled them for nearly three hundred years, until the humans began to increase substantially. All four lands were broken up and the titles are merely for show. No power or influence is left in them." He stared out the window for a while, letting the tension settle between the two of them.

"So, you aren't going back? I mean, you could run Perusers from anywhere in the world. Same with my assets." She spun around in the chair until she was dizzy and slightly nauseous. Her parents once told her they doubted she'd ever learn to not do that.

"No. There is no point." Frankly, now that his lands had fallen to ruin, this strange land held more promise than his old one did, judging from the laws and regimes.

"Alright, but don't feel like you have to stay because of me. Frankly, I think we're even on the whole 'who owes who' thing." She opened her mouth to say more when the phone rang. Since she was the only one at home, she answered quickly. "Hello?"

"_Tor! Can you hang out yet? Please please please! I promise I won't bite your friend," _Ayumi begged on the other end.

'_Yah, but he might bite you,' _Tor snickered quietly. She looked over to the dog demon who "slept" on the air mattress in her floor. _'Think you're up to an outing? You don't have to use a concealment spell around here. People might give you a few looks but no one will comment.' _

Sesshomaru considered everything. Personally, he now hated and mistrusted magic with a passion. So it was all the better for him to not have to use a concealment spell. And if he was going to run Tor's business, he might as well become adapted to a place other than her parents' house. So, he nodded.

"Sure, I can hang out. And Seth says he'll come, too. Whadya wanna do?" She crossed to her dresser and began to run a brush through her hair.

"_Well, how about just hanging out at my shop for a while? I only have a few hours left this afternoon. Then we can go see a movie or something or go have dinner or anything else we can think of!" _Ayumi practically begged. She desperately wanted to meet this "guy-friend" of Tor's. She'd never seen her friend serious about any guy and had begun to wonder about the older girl.

"Sure, Mi-mi. We'll be up there in a little bit. See ya then." Tor shook her head as she hung up. "You sure you're up to this?" When Sesshomaru merely arched a brow and said nothing, the young woman shrugged. "Alright." She pulled a ball cap on and headed out the door, Sesshomaru in tow.

Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the bookstore. Sesshomaru slid out of the truck and followed Tor inside, impressed by the number of dusty antiques that still remained from the days of the original store owner. As Tor had said, the daiyoukai received a few odd looks at his appearance—shoulder length silvery-white hair, facial "tattoos" and long nails—but no one said anything to him.

Kagome hummed to herself a little tune that she had heard Rin singing once. She held a couple books in her arms, searching for their proper spots on the shelves. The bell on the door chimed and Ayumi's voice drifted through the small store, greeting Tor and the man she had brought with her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Seth. Come in and have a seat. Would you like some coffee? I have a few different flavors." The former priestess could imagine her friend bustling behind the counter to the new frappuccino machine. Ayumi had been thinking about adding a coffee portion to her little shop and, after a little research, Kagome figured that it might be a profit to the business if they started small and see where it went from there. "Tor? Do you want some?"

"No thanks. No offense, Mi-mi, but I only drink Starbucks. Seth, did you want any?"

"No. Thank you for offering, though."

Kagome froze at that voice. It had been three, almost four, years since she heard that voice but the face that matched the voice was unforgettable. Her breathing sped up and her heart rate went through the roof. She had to lean against the bookcase for support. _Breathe. Just breathe. It's probably only a coincidence. How many times did you "see" InuYasha for the first few months after he wished you back? Deep breath. Slowly release. _Once she had calmed down, she shoved the books into the first spots she could find, promising herself that she'd come back later and fix it.

She rounded the corner and her breath was once more stolen from her. There, on the old suede couch, lounged _Sesshomaru_. _The_ dog lord. _The_ lord of the west. Sitting. On her best friend's couch. In _denim_ and _cotton_. And _ostrich_ _quill_ boots. With his hair _tied back_.

"Sesshomaru." The whispered name turned all three heads, two with suspicion and one with confusion.

"Kagome? Are you alright? This is Seth. He's a good friend of Tor's." Ayumi hovered concernedly around her future business partner and friend. "You look like you've seen a ghost. Here, sit down."

The former priestess took the offered chair, sitting a bit heavier than she had intended. Memories of times long past for her, even longer for the youkai sitting in front of her, flashed in front of her eyes. Inside of Inuyasha's father's tomb. Sesshomaru's first attempt at killing her. His saving her from the horny little member of the Band of Seven. Recovering his arm in a fight against one of Naraku's incarnation.

"He tried to kill me…" Her eyes were no longer focused, instead staring out into middle space.

Tor blinked and sent a sharp glance to Sesshomaru who, for once, looked just as shocked as everyone else in the room.

'_Is that true?' _she asked the daiyoukai. His nostrils flared, taking in the pale young woman's scent. He filtered through all of his memories, trying to remember her face. She was the one who was at the gas station and needed directions. He almost remembered her then, too. His golden eyes narrowed as it slowly came back to him.

'_Distract your friend.' _Tor nodded, not bothering to question him. With that tone, she knew she'd get absolutely no answers right now.

"Hey, Mi-mi, I decided I would like some coffee. Come show me how to work your machine." The spellcaster practically dragged away the concerned younger woman.

"Inuyasha's girl," Sesshomaru recalled. "I did not know my brother had actual intentions of marking you as his own." He remembered the way the young woman before him was always traipsing around in an indecently short and revealing outfit, shouting things at him and even hitting him with one of her arrows a time or two.

Kagome flushed, part anger, part embarrassment. "My name is Kagome. Ka-go-me. And no, he didn't mark me as his own as you so eloquently put it. _This _time period is my home."

"Hn. Impossible. Humans are short lived." He brushed away her statement with a wave of his hand.

Her feathers sufficiently ruffled, the priestess decided that it was _his _turn to be questioned. "I know. But, by the grace of a magical well, an ugly centipede woman and a godsforsaken jewel, I was dragged into _your_ time period. And well, as they say, the rest is history. Now what are _you _doing here? I expected that if you ever lived to see my time you would be in some stuffy business office running hundreds of companies or something. Not dressed like a cowboy missing his chaps, spurs and hat and sitting in a book store."

The daiyoukai arched a brow at her. "Assumptions get you nowhere. I followed Naraku to this area but failed to destroy him. Instead, I was cursed to live as a semi-mortal dog until a week ago. My curse was broken and I was free to return to my old life."

"That doesn't answer my question of why you're here _now_, though." She arched a brow right back at him. Dammit all, this was _her _time period! She wasn't about to let this pompous jerk steamroll her into answering his questions without getting a few answers of her own.

"Hn. My lands are no more. They fell to ruin over two hundred years ago. The human population increased too rapidly to keep the lands together. There is nothing to go back to." He looked away out the window, wondering where this life would take him.

"I'm sorry," she whispered quietly after a minute.

"Do not be. It was beyond your control." His gold eyes pierced her brown ones, searching her anymore information. "What became of Rin?"

Kagome sighed. They were back to one of her least favorite subjects. "I don't know. After we defeated Naraku, InuYasha wished for 'my happiness.' That stupid, vague wish catapulted me back to my time. So, frankly, I don't know what happened to _anybody_ from then." She brought her feet into the chair, resting her chin on her knees. "Was Tor the one who broke your curse?" she asked quietly, trying to find _any _topic that wasn't about the past.

"Yes. She inspired me to have a new outlook on humanity." He shifted in his chair, looking out the window for a minute then back to her. "This Sesshomaru…apolo—"

"Don't," she cut him off. He had lost his lands, his power and his influence. He didn't need to lose his dignity, too, in something so silly as apologizing about an event over five hundred years ago. "I won't hold it against you if you won't hold me firing a few arrows at you against me. Deal?" She didn't want to "lose" one more person from her past. If Sesshomaru apologized to her about that, it felt like she would.

He nodded. "Deal." Another silence dragged on, neither person capable of finding something to talk about that wouldn't lead to painful memories. "What are your plans for your future?"

Kagome shifted again, this time tucking her legs underneath her. "I was planning on moving down here from California. My lease ends at the end of August. I had thought about just transferring to the college around here. Ayumi isn't going to be nitpicky about where I get my degree from. I'll just have to see if my scholarship will transfer. If it doesn't," she shrugged, "then I'll tough it out for another year in California. You?"

"I am the head of a business and hold power of attorney over Tor's assets," he replied without missing a beat. It was getting easier and easier to say that.

Kagome chuckled a bit. "That would be like you. Get back on top and in a position of authority within a week of being back to normal." She blushed a bit when her stomach rumbled loudly.

Sesshomaru smirked before standing and leaving the area. Kagome blinked but remained seated, wondering where he'd gone. A minute later he returned with a set of keys in hand.

"Come. You have obviously not eaten today. It will be some time yet before your friend can close her shop. We will go for lunch." He stood waiting for her to move.

The young woman just gaped up at the daiyoukai. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish gasping for water. Could this really be the Sesshomaru she knew? The one who was cold, closed off and hated humans? Well, he did say that Tor gave him a new outlook on humans… Maybe she ought to give this a shot. She didn't think he'd kill her in broad daylight.

"Um, sure. But shouldn't we at least wait for Tor?"

Sesshomaru's brow ticked at the memory of his human's teasing. _Sesshomaru's got a crush…_she had giggled in a sing-song voice inside his head that was still echoing around. All he had done was ask for the keys to her truck and her debit card. He saw no reason why she should term an act of mutual benefit to be a "crush."

"She will remain behind with Ayumi. Where do you wish to go?" He held the door open for her as she exited. The daiyoukai reached the truck door before she did, opening it up and closing it once she was inside.

Kagome for her part was shocked at the _gentlemanly _behavior of this once-ruthless youkai. "Um, Mazzio's? It's a nice little Italian restaurant."

Sesshomaru nodded, started the engine and pulled onto the road. The drive to the little place was quiet. The former Western Lord knew all the streets backwards and forwards with his eyes closed. He had spent a few nights walking the streets, learning short cuts and back ways then flying over them to impress the locations of businesses upon his memory. He would not be disadvantaged if he could help it.

"If I stay in California, you're welcome to come by anytime you want. Ayumi has my address." The former priestess blushed from to the roots of her hair at the way her little invitation had sounded. Honestly, she hadn't meant it to sound so…_desperate_ as it had come out. "I mean, for old time's sake? Oh phooey." She huffed in irritation. "I know what it's like to feel like no one understands what you went through. Or no one understands the real you. I know who you were and don't care about who you might be now. If you ever want to just talk, I'm willing to listen." She smiled a little at him.

He nodded, a bit taken back by her bold offer. Hadn't Tor said that the male was usually the one to initiate a relationship? The girl beside him was always confusing, he remembered.

"I appreciate the offer and will keep it in mind. The same offer extends to you. If you ever need to _talk_, you are welcome to contact me." He pulled into the parking lot, got out and crossed to let her out of her door before escorting her inside.

*.:.*QotK*.:.*

Chapter 8

Start: A couple hours after the end of ch 7

End: A little over a week later.

*.:.*QotK*.:.*

A/N: Phew! Just over 13 pages long! But you know what? I've hit my stride for this story. I had to make myself _stop _writing so I could have stuff for later chapters and get this one out…two days early! Look at me go! Lol Hope y'all have a wonderful New Year's!


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